Mark P. Taylor, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Physics
Contact
Mark Taylor is an Associate Professor of Physics and an active researcher in theoretical and computational soft-matter physics. Before coming to Hiram in 2001 Taylor taught and did research at Swarthmore and Dartmouth Colleges.
Taylor teaches in all areas of physics but especially likes the formal beauty of quantum mechanics and the intricacies of statistical mechanics. He also enjoys teaching non-technical courses on quantum reality, cosmology, and particle physics.
Taylor is committed to providing research opportunities for his students at Hiram (as he had as an undergraduate at MIT). He hopes that his passion for research and enthusiasm for teaching will continue to inspire his students to pursue careers in science and engineering.
Education
- Ph.D., Physics, 1991 Brandeis University
- B.S., Physics, 1982 Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Research Interests
My research is focused on theoretical problems in statistical mechanics, especially in the area of fluids. I use a combination of analytic theory, numerical analysis, and computer simulation to study structural and thermodynamic properties of polymers, biological macromolecules, liquid crystals, and other complex fluid systems. My research is funded by the National Science Foundation, Division of Materials Research and I actively involve Hiram students in all aspects of the work.
View My Research
Selected Publications
- M.P. Taylor, W. Paul, and K. Binder, On the polymer physics origins of protein folding thermodynamics, J. Chem. Phys. 145, 174903 (2016) 10 pp.
- M.P. Taylor, Y. Ye*, and S.R. Adhikari*, Conformation of a flexible polymer chain in explicit solvent: Accurate solvation potentials for Lennard-Jones chains, J. Chem. Phys. 143, 204901 (2015) 12 pp.
- M.P. Taylor, P.P. Aung*, and W. Paul, Partition function zeros and phase transitions for a square-well polymer chain, Phys. Rev. E 88, 012604 (2013).
- M.P. Taylor, W. Paul, and K. Binder, Phase Transitions of a Single Polymer Chain: A Wang-Landau Simulation Study, J. Chem. Phys. 131, 114907 (2009).
- M.P. Taylor and G.M. Petersen*, Solvation Potentials for Flexible Chain Molecules in Solution: On the Validity of a Pair-wise Decomposition, J. Chem. Phys. 127, 184901.1-9 (2007)*undergraduate Hiram student
Fun Facts
- Once upon a time I spent a lot of time climbing rocks, especially big rocks! I’ve climbed seven grade VI’s on El Capitan (including NA Wall, The Shield, and Salathe Wall) and solo aided several grade V’s in Yosemite and Zion. These days I feed the rat by doing scrambles routes in the Canadian Rockies.
