Recent Posts

• January 22, 2019

  Acknowledgments

  I finished my thesis last week and have many people to be thankful for.

• July 10, 2018

  Science Isn't Going to Deliver Perfect Gun Legislation

  I have trouble with perfectionism. Throughout school, I would rewrite homework to make it look neater. I publish so infrequently because I go through many edits and lots of research before I’m satisfied with an article. My Perfectionism gets in the way of progress. This is the same thing that’s holding Congress from doing anything about gun violence in the United States. And this might only get worse now that the CDC and NIH are allowed to do gun violence research again. But isn’t that confusing? Shouldn’t more research lead to a solution?

• April 12, 2018

  Skype a Scientist

  About a month ago, I Skyped into a science classroom at a high school in Indiana. It was a bit early for everyone, but that didn't stop us from talking about LEDs, physics, why I decided to become a scientist, and even about my favorite board games! I was talking to students as part of a program called Skype a Scientist. Skype a Scientist brings a scientist into a teacher’s classrooms, where they can talk about their work and what life as a scientist is like. I matched with Jason Bodnar, a science teacher in Indiana, and talked to a few of his classes. During the conversations I had with Jason's students, I realized that we were spending most of our time talking about what life as a PhD student and scientist is like.

• January 24, 2018

  Meltdown and Spectre affect your computer security, but should you be worrying about them?

  Meltdown and Spectre affect your computer security, but should you be worrying about them? This month, two problems with computers and their security were announced. They’re so big they got their own names and logos. But do you personally have to care about them? Or are there better things to devote your worries about computer security to?

• January 16, 2018

  Your Nerd of Trust

  If you’re reading this from Facebook, you are part of my friends and family. That means you know that I’m a huge nerd. I’ve wanted to study physics since high school and I’m now finishing up my PhD. When we meet in person (which probably doesn’t happen often enough!) lots of times you ask about the latest in the world of science or physics. But, I’m here online too and I want to let you know that you can ask me stuff here whenever you want.