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Bees
Bees are amazing. My initial draw to them was that they are one of the leading reasons I get to eat delicious and beautiful food and, of course, their cuteness but as time has gone on I have become even more intrigued. Their ability to see ultraviolet light, the polar geometry flight patterns, and, in the bumble bees case, their ability to fly at all are so interesting and impressive to me. Like I said, Bees are amazing!!
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Internet Of Things (IoT)
This is a recent interest of mine that was borne out of my work at the APD Lab. As I learned more about Rasperry Pi's, Arduino's and communications technologies, I started coming up with some ideas for personal projects for home automation. Currently, I am working on trying to incorporate Alexa's features in my home automation projects - detecting when I am in the kitchen and playing a certain playlist and reading my messages and news when I steep my tea.
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Programming
Programming is a skill that I always wanted to have but was too intimidated to start working on. However, that all changed last year and now that I have finally got started - programming is a skill that I am developing in my free time. I primarily use YouTube and the plethora of online resources available to learn and practice. My go-to IDE of choice is Visual Studio, however I am trying to be a Vim master. Also, spaces > tabs.
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Mathematics and Mathematicians
As evident by my life choices, math truly is one of my biggest passions. It is the purest way of viewing the world, and it is this very lens that I am trying to polish to get a better understanding of reality. In my free time, I love watching 3Blue1Brown videos, working on sample math problems, and learning about great Mathematicians of the past. Being an aspiring mathematician, I am very inspired by the work of Emmy Noether and talk about her to my friends/family on every occasion that I get.
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Art and Artists
Art has always been an integral part of my life. My father is an artist and an art teacher so I was raised to see the world through a creative lens. I grew up in awe with the works of M. C. Escher, Gustav Klimt, and Caravaggio. As I got older, I realized my affinity to the sciences but my love for the arts didn’t dwindle. Instead, now, I see Mathematics and Art as one in the same. Math, I would say, is just my favorite type of art.
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Outreach
As an aunt and older sister I truly believe it is up to us to inspire and encourage scientific curiosity within the community. I love chatting to anyone about ideas and the wonders of science. When we aren’t in a global pandemic I love attending conferences and volunteering at community events to help people see why Math and Physics are so important, interesting and, best of all, fun!
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Food and Travelling
Some of the most rewarding experiences I have had in life have come through the opportunity to travel. I feel incredibly grateful that I have had the opportunity to explore countries like Italy, Germany, England, France, Ireland and more. Though it isn’t as common anymore, Pinterest is great for feeding my daydreams to explore the world and all it has to offer.
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Social Dynamics
I love to understand and analyze social situations. I find the rich interactions between humans absolutely amazing - starting from their body language to their use of language. Looking at social situations as information channels has allowed me to better understand my friends and family and also develop a higher EQ. It is a hobby that has paid its divident as I am always the person to diffuse conflicts in a friend group whenever it arises.
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Teaching
I was always passionate about learning which transcended more and more into teaching as I grew up. My experiences in teaching Math to 7th graders when I was in high school, STEM and college readiness classes to middle and high schoolers last summer, and more recently being a peer tutor to students with learning disabilities in college serve as constant reminders as how fulfilling teaching is for me.
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Reading
Sadly I can't say that I am able to read as much as I want to, however, every now and then I pick up a book and finish it in a weekend. My favorite book often changes, as there is a different book for every occasion, but if I had to choose something I would choose What if? by Randall Munroe. Currently I am enjoying The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Lui. If you happen to have any suggestions I’d be happy to hear them!