Page 64 - Summer 2018

Two-Body Problem
time. I knew I had to make compromises, but I tried to be kind to myself and not feel guilty about what I was not do- ing. Sometimes, I decided that staying late at work one night and missing a family dinner in order to finish a poster for a conference was worth it. Other times, I decided that my son’s Little League game was important enough that I would just put off getting my paper out for another few days. And once I made a choice, I tried not to dwell on what I was giving up; at the Little League game, I enjoyed myself 100% and didn’t let myself feel stressed about work. I was present in the mo- ment.
“I have also been incredibly lucky: I was able to make choices because my husband, whom I met while still an undergraduate, has always been supportive. We split duties at home in ways that made sense for us (he cooks, I do the laundry; he does the monthly bills, but I handle the taxes and the college investment funds), but we both try to be flexible and fill in when there was a pressing deadline or a business trip. This approach, of being understanding and willing to bend, has let us both raise our two sons while pursuing demanding, rewarding careers.”
Fall 2017 Honoree Juliette Ioup
program at UNO. They mentored many students whom they considered their children. Juliette shared their two-body ex- periences in an interview, summarized here.
“While George started teaching and doing research at UNO, I taught entry-level math classes and finished my disserta- tion. When I finished my PhD, I applied to the numerous universities in New Orleans. I was hired for a one-year visit- ing faculty position at Xavier University, which turned into a tenure-track position. During this time, I was still asso- ciated with UNO, teaching evening graduate-level signal- processing courses that George developed. After nine years at Xavier, I took a job at Texaco doing geophysical signal processing on seismic data. After three years, I wanted to be back in academia. I was hired at UNO, officially as full-time, tenure-track faculty. This was ideal.
“George and I always did research together; we had comple- mentary skills. I really miss his part now. I do very well at running the computer and doing all the detailed work. On the other hand, he was much better at administrative skills. Together we accomplished much more that we could have done separately. I am currently trying to continue the teach- ing, research, and mentoring and promote the department that became successful and well-known in large part because of George. It is extremely hard without him, but I cannot give up on what he started and what we built together.”
Barb’s and Juliette’s experiences highlight some of the chal- lenges faced by couples pursuing two careers. We asked some other ASA members to share their experiences as well, and the full responses are available on the ASA Women in Acoustics webpage (womeninacoustics.org). A theme was drawn from each story on how to deal with two body- challenges, and an excerpt from each story that portrays the theme is presented here.
Be Willing to Compromise
Marcia Isakson (immediate ASA past president) finished her PhD in atomic and molecular physics before switching to an underwater acoustics research position as part of her two- body solution.
“My husband and I met at West Point. I had plans to go to graduate school, so he picked Fort Hood Army Base for its proximity to the good physics graduate program at the Uni- versity of Texas at Austin (UT). My husband left the army and found Austin to be a great place for electrical engineers. Because he was established in Austin, I only looked for jobs there after completing my PhD. I ended up staying at Ap- plied Research Laboratories (ARL) at UT (ARL:UT).
Juliette Ioup
Juliette Ioup (left) is a profes- sor of physics, geophysics, and electrical engineering at the Uni- versity of New Orleans (UNO), Louisiana. Her research inter- ests span many areas of compu- tational physics including geo- physical, acoustic, and aerospace signal analysis and processing; digital filtering and neural net-
works; and underwater acoustics modeling and simulation. Juliette completed her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in physics from the University of Florida, Gainesville, and her PhD in physics from the University of Connecticut, Storrs.
Since 2009, Juliette has served as the Seraphia D. Leyda Uni- versity Teaching Fellow at UNO that is given to outstanding faculty members for excellence in teaching. Juliette is a dedi- cated, knowledgeable, and helpful advisor. Juliette is also ac- tive in the ASA and was named a Fellow in 1993. In 2013, she received the Rossing Prize in Acoustics Education for her significant contributions.
Juliette shared a 51-year marriage with ASA Fellow George Ioup, who passed away on January 20, 2016. Through many years of research, course development, and championing of the program, Juliette and George helped shape the physics
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