Two Illinois State University students who recently spent almost six weeks at the Warsaw College of Science in Poland studying computational physics have returned home and are anticipating the arrival next month of the first Polish student in the new exchange program between the two institutions.

Jennifer Csesznegi of Bloomington and James Woods of Normal found that their greatest growth and learning came not from the independent research in physics they conducted alongside college professors, but in the friendships and relationships they developed with the Polish students.

Csesznegi, who lived in a dormitory as roommates with Radka Bach, the Polish exchange student coming to Illinois State this fall, said the friendships she made were important in developing greater understanding between students in the two countries.

Woods said the strong computational skills he and Csesznegi gained as Illinois State physics students served them very well during their six?week research experience. Exposure to the educational approach at the Warsaw college, which is devoted only to the study of science, gave them a greater appreciation for their broad?based education at Illinois State.

Csesznegi and Woods study computational physics, which involves the use of highperformance computers to explore physical phenomena ranging from quarks to black holes which otherwise could not be studied. Illinois State's physics department, an innovator in computational science education, was one of the first departments in the U.S. to offer a course in computational physics in the early 1970's.

By the 1990's, the physics department has led interdisciplinary projects to develop specialized computational science courses. One of these courses, "Methods of Computational Science," received the 1995 Undergraduate Computational Science Education Award from the U. S. Department of Energy. In 1997, the new Bachelor's degree in computational physics has received another DOE award as one of the first undergraduate programs of that type in the nation.

The Warsaw College of Science was established five years ago by scientists from two chemistry institutes, two physics institutes and the institute of mathematics in Poland in order to give students an opportunity to work with the top scientists in that country. The institution was created in an effort to make better use of the countries physicists, mathematicians and chemists, who previously worked only in research institutes and little as educators.

Professors Qichang Su and Rainer Grobe of ISU's Physics department have been involved in the establishment of the exchange program, the first at Illinois State exclusively for science majors.