Home Institution: Coe College
Research Project: Ultracold Atoms and Molecules
UW Mentor(s): Subhadeep Gupta

Q: What are your physics/science interests?
I firmly believe that if you talk to the right person, anything can be interesting. And as far as I'm concerned, the less I understand, the better!

But in general, I like science that pushes us forward - science that develops the fundamental paradigm shifts (e.g. vacuum tubes -> bits -> qubits) which advance technological progress. My preference is for developing something new, rather than improving on what already exists - not to say that either one is better or worse than the other, of course.

Q: What are your other interests?
I'm a bit of an amateur photographer in my spare time, and I still shoot with my dad's old film camera, which is pretty fun. Seattle has made an excellent subject so far.

I've also worked in politics for a few years now - I really enjoy meeting so many people and coming to understand the rationale people have for voting the way they do (or eschewing the process entirely).

I'll also be graduating with a minor in religion because it combines the most fascinating aspects of anthropology, sociology, and philosophy into one. It certainly doesn't hurt that the religion department at Coe is absolutely fantastic.

Q: What would you like to do after college?
Currently I'm considering three options, in no particular order: 1. Build a tech startup with two of my friends
2. Go to grad school for something exciting
3. Sell all my earthly possessions, move to Nepal, and become a Tibetan Buddhist monk

Truthfully, I have no idea. But it's worth trying a lot of things to see what you like, so that's what I'm doing here!

Q: Tell us one strange but interesting fact about yourself.
For almost all of high school, I actually had colored hair. I've had bright pink, a sort of deep blue-purple, and red, among others. It was actually pretty fun, and you get all sorts of interesting people coming up to you asking if they can touch your head.

Q: What first sparked your interest in Physics?
My high school physics teacher, Mr. Kaback, was one of the best teachers I've ever had. Originally I had wanted to become a physics teacher, out of a desire to be as Mr. Kaback was to me, to someone else, and while I may or may not eventually go into teaching, to some extent my interests in physics and politics (among many other things) still stem from that same desire.

Q: If you could have any pet what would it be?
I've often toyed with the idea of training a herd of the very socialized squirrels on Coe's campus to do my nefarious bidding.

If I'm allowed to go back in time, I've kinda always wanted a Megatherium, a giant sloth from roughly the Ice Age (which I would totally ride to class every day). But if I have to choose something practical, dogs are great, so probably one of those.

Q: If you had a free month and unlimited funds, how would you spend your time?
I have a friend who is also really into photography, and we've talked about taking a trip somewhere together. So I'd go somewhere with her, preferably somewhere with mountains, like China, Mongolia, or Tibet (she's also fluent in Cantonese and Mandarin, which would help), but anywhere pretty would be fun.

Q: If you could get a grant to study anything what would it be?
I'm not sure - sometimes I get paralyzed when I have too many options. But, since you're making me choose, I've enjoyed hands-on research since high school robotics and I keep feeling that computer programming is an area I'm weak in. It looks like artificially-intelligent robotics are going to be the way of the future, so I'd love to dive in and give it a shot.