Some of my leisurely pursuits include cycling in its many forms, photography, cooking, reading, traveling, and exploring the intersections of science with art, culture, and religion. And sometimes, but rarely, I find the time just to exist.

Postdocing

Still hanging around Penn, I currently work as a postdoctoral researcher in the lab of Shelley Berger. My main project is trying to understand the role of epigenetics in aging and behavior using ants as a model system.

Quakers Fighting in the Streets

I used to be a graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania, in the lab of Junhyong Kim. I entered as part of the second class of students in the Genomics and Computational Biology graduate program. After completing my coursework and laboratory rotations, I finally managed to complete my dissertation at the end of 2009.

Old Pine and the Great Spirit

Previously I attended Dartmouth College, where I received my Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, with a minor in Genetics, Cell, and Developmental Biology. While contrasting memories of woody New Hampshire and urban, historic Philadelphia do battle in my brain, I do wish my daily commute featured more "lone pines".

The Computer Science department at Dartmouth provided a fantastic foundation for me. This is a specific instance where focusing on undergraduate teaching as opposed to graduate level research greatly rewards the student. I think back as to what it would have been like to be taught by John Kemeny in the 60’s, when Computer Science was Mathematics and everyone was thrilled to play with BASIC.

The Hawk Will Never Die

Half of my teenage years were spent within the concrete walls of St. Joe’s Preparatory School, just north of Center City, Philadelphia. I fondly remember my classics professors, who were all second-to-none. Father Joe D’Alessandro taught us to chant declensions and conjugations in Gregorian fashion. Sarah Atkins taught me Attic Greek and Intermediate Latin, and I won’t forget the Homer Simpson-esque figure of Dikaeopolis. Mr. Kling was the capable commander of Vergil’s Aeneid, and Mike Dougherty, tough-guy that he was, taught us the slippery ropes of Roman Poetry. Of course I cannot forget the thoughtful gaze and prolific one-liners of Dr. Henry Bender, with whom I traveled in Italy and Greece.

Half of my time was spent rowing along the Schuylkill River. Before St. Joe’s had it’s own boathouse, we rowed out of PennAC, third along Boathouse Row, which was quaint but cramped.