Presenter

Dr. David A. Joiner is the Kenneth L. Estabrook professor of Science, Technology, and Mathematics Education at Kean University, and an Associate Professor in the New Jersey Center for Science, Technology, and Mathematics. Dr. Joiner’s work focuses on two areas, the application of computing to the solution of problems in astronomy and the infusion of computational science into secondary and undergraduate curriculum. Dr. Joiners work in educational technology focuses on building hardware and software tools that enhance the classroom. Dr. Joiner is developing software tools for performing scientific visualization in virtual reality environments. Dr. Joiner is a member of the LittleFe team that builds and designs portable cluster computers for classroom use, and has worked with the Shodor Education Foundation helping to design such tools as Project Interactivate and the Modeling and Simulation Tools for Education Reform. Dr. Joiner was a Co-PI on the Computational Science Education Reference Desk project funded through the National Science Foundation’s National Science Digital Library, and has served as an instructor for the National Computational Science Institute, developing curriculum for NCSI’s workshops on parallel and distributed computing and visualization. As an astrophysicist, Dr. Joiner’s work focuses on modeling properties of the interstellar medium, particularly through the use of radiative transfer for embedded objects such as asymptotic giant branch stars and cataclysmic objects such as novae. Additionally Dr. Joiner uses N-Body gravitational modeling combined with simulated annealing and Monte-Carlo Markov Chain techniques to validate the identification of planets around other stars. Dr. Joiner received his Ph.D. in Physics from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1999.