Oxford Summer School – Pre- and Post-Course Assignments

I decided to attend a series of four adult courses in Oxford, during one month in the summer of 2026. A pre-course and post course assignment was required for each.

The subjects were:-

“130 Years of Discovery: Nuclear and Particle Physics from Becquerel to Gianotti“

“Smaller Than the Atom: A Primer on All Things Quantum“

“The Architectural Secrets of Oxford’s Classical Buildings“.

“Understanding Space and Time“.

For more information on this particular series of courses, check out Oxford University Summer School for Adults – 2026.

I also documented my individual pre-course assignments, along with the course overview and the recommended reading, and my reviews of those books.

Here I pick-up those pre-course assignments, add any specific comments I received from the tutor, and I’ve added my post-course assignments as well (with the tutors comments).

I’ve added also a few details and comments on the course itself.

Course Documentation - 130 Years of Discovery: Nuclear and Particle Physics from Becquerel to Gianotti

Pre-Course Assignment – Babylonian Omen Classification as an Early System of Knowledge

The task was to describe a classification model/system to organise information, not related to nuclear and particle physics. Explain its development, use and limitations (possible examples include the periodic table in chemistry, taxonomy in biology and several rock classification systems in geology).

The tutor did make one very pertinent comment. I added some additional highlights of the Babylonian civilisation at the end, and I should have instead used the opportunity to explain more fully the limitations of the approach to understanding omens, and how following civilisations addressed those weaknesses, e.g. lack of cause-effect.

In-Course Assignment – The Tau Neutrino

The task was to write about one of the elementary particles in the Standard Model, but excluding the electron, photon and neutrino. I looked at a few options, but decided to focus on the Tau Neutrino (for no particular reason). I think the tutor would have also accepted-liked that I twist my post-course assignment around, starting from the “kink” in the track photo, and explaining what that meant.

General Comments – The group consisted of six students, four Americans, a young Brazilian, and myself. The tutor was Susan Bigge, a US physics teacher and K-12 STEM coordinator. She had a preset plan, which she customised day-by-day, but generally she followed a relativity coherent approach, including a reasonable dose of basic mathematics. Overall, the group was in a learning mode.

Course Overview - Understanding the Nature of Small - A Primer On All things Quantum

Pre-Course Assignment – GPS as an example of the Power of Ten

The task was to take inspiration from the book powers of 10 where each picture zooms in 10X, and choose a length scale (example the size of an ant or a spec of dust) describe the world from this point of view then zoom in 10X. How would your observations of the world change?

In-Course Assignment – The Einstein Telelscope

The task was to choose a quantum oddity and describe how classical ideas fail to explain it. Being sure to highlight where normal intuition fails and contrast it with the quantum description of the oddity.

Frankly, I was not happy with my post-course assignment. Looking at the complete Einstein Telescope made my text too long, too complicated, and not well focussed. My impression was that the tutor had the same opinion. Had I been on a points-based course program, I would have had to completely redraft my assignment. I should have just focussed on the squeezed-vacuum injection.

General Comments – The group consisted of 9 people, including myself. The tutor was Timothy Charlton, a neutron scattering scientist at Oak Ridge. The overall approach was more “workshop” than “class room”. A lot of mathematics, a lot different examples where quantum physics takes front seat, and a lot of Q&A.

I think most people were wanting more or less the same thing from the previous week’s particle physics course. But this week it’s possible that everyone will have a different view as to how successful it was. Personally I had no explicit expectation, so I learned a lot, but I’m not sure how much I will retain in the years to come.

My only real comment would be that as the week progressed it began to feel like being hit by a “fire hose” of information, much of which I could not digest. However, many of the other students appeared to appreciate this approach.

Course Overview - The Architectural Secrets of Oxford’s Classical Buildings

Pre-Course Assignment – Two Examples of Classical Architecture

The pre-course assignment was to “Write about one or two classical buildings that you have visited or that greatly interest you. Discuss their location and history, provide some illustrations and explain what it is about the architecture and features of the buildings that interests you”.

In-Course Assignment – Fit for Purpose

The in-course assignment was to “Write a narrative and suggest symbolic themes for one or more of sites in the city. Must be accompanied by photographs…

My assignment was appreciated, the feedback was useful, and I did make a few corrections. From the first two weeks I had learned to look at the background, draft that as an (optional) annex, and then draft the assignment. It helped that the two buildings I took to task, were easier to research, digest, and analyse.

General Comments – It’s interesting that in my first week its was a “classroom” model, the second week a “workshop” model, and this week was different again.

The group consisted of 8 people, two Americans, a woman from Singapore, and five Europeans, including myself. The group was generally younger, and at least four were professionals (studying architecture or working in interior design). The others were on long-term adult education courses, where attendance and course assignments were assessed.