<p>What sort of research opportunities are available at Haverford, specifically in the area of physics? Is there even research going on at Haverford? If so, can you become involved in research as a freshman?</p>
<p>Don’t take this the wrong way but,… you’re joking,… right?? :)</p>
<p>Professor Gerry Gollub: At least up until 5 years ago, and maybe even now, had the distinction of being the only professor at a LAC who is a member of the National Academy of Science. More about him from the HC web page that I pasted below. In med school, when we studied the blood clotting cascade, my professor, whom I did research with senior year and would go out on occasion for beers to talk about politics, was mentioned in our textbook because he discovered (at haverford) one of the key enzymes required to clot blood (Dr. Ariel Lowey)… who passed away a few years ago.</p>
<p>Gollub:“was elected to membership in the National Academy of Sciences in 1993, and became a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1992. He was the first recipient of the APS Award for Research in an Undergraduate Institution in 1985, was a Guggenheim Fellow in 1984-85, won an international “Science for Art” Award in 1994, and earlier held Danforth and Woodrow Wilson Fellowships. He was a Morris Loeb Lecturer in Physics at Harvard University in 1990, a Sigma Xi National Lecturer in 1983-85, and a Visiting Professor at Ecole Normale in 1985, and 1991. Gollub previously served as Provost (Chief Academic Officer) at Haverford. He received his Ph.D. in experimental condensed matter physics at Harvard University in 1971.”</p>
<p>He is one of many stellar scientist-educators at HC. You will have access to him and many other prominent individuals as well. It is not unusual to meet HC students accepted to MIT or Caltech undergrad who chose HC for the personalized opportunities available… from my class, I can think of 3 (not like something we actively discuss, just only in passing so who knows if there’s more). As a bio/biochem student, I was accepted to summer programs my soph/junior years to do research at Los Alamos and Oak Ridge… wound up doing health policy work on Capital Hill though. Summer research positions begin normally sophmore year but if you have strong lab skills prior, you might start earlier doing smaller projects… who knows?</p>
<p>I would encourage you and other prospective students to look on HC web page for your department of interest, and if you still have questions, to then e-mail faculty directly and ask faculty to provide names of students for you to contact. DO NOT BE SHY!!! I can’t say this enough but… going to a LAC- and one of the top ones in the country (and, in the sciences, maybe the best (for example, when I was a student, only 2 LACs offered students the opportunity to study AND create monoclonal antibodies (williams and haverford))… the benefit of a LAC is that the professors are there to teach the students and are open to your contact… try it and you will know why so many stellar students choose LACs over the Ivies.</p>
<p>Finally, some friendly advice from a scientist, physician, educator, and a policy/management student… I have to encourage you guys to be assertive with your ambitions. You guys are adults and will be going to top academic institutions, Hc or otherwise. Please be pro-active with this, do the research on the web if you have ?s because the info is there, and please, for your own sake, don’t rely on passive communications on anonymous/ unregulated internet chat sites. Get out of passivity and start your research skills now. “don’t ask, look”. best of luck.</p>
<p>Just in case… as I’ve seen some brilliant med students do/say crazy things… if you guys decide to contact professors at HC (and I’d recommend it), do the research 1st and ask specific questions… </p>
<p>ie “I saw that you conduct non-linear fluid research and you’ve written a paper with this student, what year of college did they start working with you?” and not “what kind of research do you do?” or something very general… same thing for the social sciences and humanities. good luck!</p>
<p>impressive!
i plan to major in physics/astro… prof bruce partridge in astro was a rhoads scholar too… and i hear he’s oh so nice! 
hc alum… thanks for the advice.</p>
<p>hey wok the line, Haverford physics department is greeeaatttt…you will get lots of oppertunities. I am a freshman right now, and did research this winter break with Walter Smith (nano-science). this summer i am working with Andrea Liu (upenn physics department chair).
If you like to talk more about haverford physics department, you can email me at <a href=“mailto:mshresth@haverford.edu”>mshresth@haverford.edu</a>
gtg
-peace</p>
<p>hey david98108, if you have any questions about physics department, lemme know.</p>
<p>hey haverunik
thanks for your offer to answer my questions. unfortunately, my older sister’s friend graduated from the 'ford several years ago as a biophysics major and answered all of my questions for me… ummm… she’s now at cal-tech… shockingly brilliant. i’m still waiting on financial aid decisions, but most likely i’ll be at haverford next year!</p>
<p>I don’t mean to put Munik on the spot by posting this, but I just thought being the youngest player on Nepal’s National Team was a pretty cool thing (got this from Philly Inquirer website 4/23/06)… hope your friends and family are OK in Nepal. I imagine it’s hard to be 1/2 way around the world at Haverford when so much is going on at home.</p>
<p>PS: I don’t know a darn thing about physics and scientific research, but if anyone is interested in law, let me know as I’m a recent law grad and have sold my soul to corporate america… for the time being.</p>
<hr>
<p>Student SpotlightStudent: Munik Shrestha</p>
<p>School: Haverford College, where he is a freshman.</p>
<p>What he has done: Shrestha, 20, came to the United States from Nepal in August and enrolled at Haverford as a physics major. Because of his strong academic background, he was placed in a sophomore physics class.</p>
<p>In Nepal, at age 14, he was the youngest player to join the national cricket team. At Haverford, he is a member of the school cricket team, which went undefeated in the fall and won the East Coast Intercollegiate Cricket Championship in October.</p>
<p>Cricket resumed at Haverford this month with the spring season, which continues into May.</p>
<p>Question:What do you love about playing cricket?</p>
<p>A:I started playing cricket at age four. In Nepal, I started playing with a club at age 11 and then on to the national team.</p>
<p>In cricket, it’s not just about technique and hitting the ball. It also requires passion, confidence and concentration. I like that it is a game with focus.</p>
<p>Q:What book are you reading?</p>
<p>A: Introduction to Quantum Mechanics by David J. Griffiths. I enjoy reading about quantum mechanics and string theory.</p>
<p>Q: What fascinates you about quantum mechanics?</p>
<p>A: It’s about the truth of nature, the way quantum physics cannot predict what will happen in experiments. It’s all about probability.</p>
<p>Q: What physics mystery would you like to solve?</p>
<p>A:Relating quantum mechanics and general relativity to find the theory of everything. I would like to be part of solving that mystery.</p>
<p>I’m thinking about doing research in quantum mechanics. I’m a fan of Stephen Hawking, Edward Witten and Einstein.</p>
<p>Q:Do you plan to return to Nepal?</p>
<p>A:I’m not sure. After Haverford, I would like to go to Nepal or another remote country and teach physics.</p>
<p>Q: What are your other interests and hobbies?</p>
<p>A: I like to go to movies, watch television shows about science, and hang out with friends.</p>
<p>What a professor says: “Munik is a terrific physics student, and also a delightful presence in our department,” physics professor Walter Smith says.</p>
<p>“He always has a smile on his face, and he gets everyone around him even more excited about physics, especially quantum mechanics. He spent a few weeks doing research with me over the winter break on attaching carbon nanotubes to the probes of an atomic force microscope, and made remarkable progress.”</p>
<p>“He always has a smile on his face…”</p>
<p>you seem like a great guy and very friendly, but this quote make you look positively stoned. lol</p>