PSU’s Dr. George Tuthill Provides Technical Expertise on NBC’s Science of the Winter Olympic Games

February 2nd, 2010 by Adam

PLYMOUTH, N.H.-
A Plymouth State University administrator is helping NBC and the National Science Foundation explain the science behind athletic performance at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games. The Science of the Olympic Winter Games Website features 16 video segments detailing the science behind each sport, such as ski jumping, ice skating, bobsledding and snowboarding. Tuthill, a physicist, was asked to describe scientific principles at work in various sports activities because of his past work in science outreach with the National Teachers Enhancement Network, a project funded by the National Science Foundation. The Network produced online resources for science teachers based on the events of the 1998 Winter Olympics.

Dr. George Tuthill
PSU’s Dr. George Tuthill is interviewed by NBC News as part of their Science of the Winter Olympics Website

“Understanding the science principles at work can help anyone to better appreciate the Olympic events and the accomplishments of these athletes. And, for teachers of science, the Olympics represent wonderful “teachable moments” to convey science ideas,” Tuthill said.

Tuthill’s comments are featured in the segments about ski jumping, bobsled, speed skating and curling.

Tuthill is the Interim Associate Vice President for the College of Graduate Studies at PSU.

Prior to his role at PSU, he was a member of the faculty of Montana State University, where he taught and conducted research in physics for more than 30 years. From 2004 to 2006 he served as Associate Dean of MSU’s College of Letters and Science and, for 2006 to 2007, as Interim Dean of the College. He earned a PhD in theoretical physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1976.

NBC News interviewed Tuthill for the Science of the Winter Olympic Games at PSU in September, 2009, as an educational component of their broadcast of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, British Columbia.

For more information about this release, contact Bruce Lyndes, PSU Media Relations Mgr., (603) 535-2775 or blyndes@plymouth.edu

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