Q: What are your physics/science interests?

I’m most interested in condensed matter and material science!

Q: What are your other interests?

In my free time, I enjoy cross-stitch, board games, and historical fencing. I’m also taking a second major in linguistics in addition to physics.

Q: What would you like to do after college?

After I get my Bachelor’s degree, I plan to get a PhD, and hopefully eventually become a professor!

Q: Tell us one strange but interesting fact about yourself.

My crowning achievement in high school was directing a High School Musical themed production of Hamlet during my senior year (with a full musical score, of course). We had to change the lyrics to most of the songs, but it turns out Bop to the Top makes a great villain song for a murderous king as-is.

Q: What first sparked your interest in Physics?

Carl Sagan’s Cosmos (the TV series) and Brian Greene’s books were definitely formative experiences.

Q: If you could have any pet what would it be?

I love dogs! My family had a husky and a springer spaniel growing up, but I also think borzois and their weird faces are really cute.

Q: If you had a free month and unlimited funds, how would you spend your time?

The most responsible thing to do would be to use all the money to end poverty and fund every research, public art, and civil infrastructure project within my reach. The nice thing about unlimited funds, though, is that I could hire the finest experts from across the world to do that part for me and still have infinite money to spend on my own fun project. To that end, I’d love to open a coffee shop with my friends. We always used to talk about how, if all of our career plans happened to fall through at the same time, we’d all get together again and open a combo bookstore/coffee shop/tutoring center, and I think it’d be good fun to see that fantasy realized. It’d be a lot to do, especially in just a month, but anything’s possible with infinite money and a dream, right?

Q: If you could get a grant to study anything what would it be?

Superconductivity! Or novel materials for solar cells/energy storage.