Hi y’all! I’m Bisrat, but most people call me Bis (barring the few people that like uttering my government name to get my attention). I’m a sophomore from Merritt Island, Florida, where all the rockets go pew and houses in a 10-mile radius experience mini earthquakes weekly. Growing up on my rooftop seeing rockets blast off to space was such an earth-shattering experience (hehe) that I decided to major in Physics here at Caltech. Coming from Florida, the transition to California weather meant I got to keep most of my wardrobe intact (hooray!). However, most of my friends said I needed an overhaul (boo), so I’ve slowly spent my summer curating a thrifted wardrobe befit of an LA resident.

At Caltech, I’m a member of Page House (whose house?) and part of the executive committee where I serve as Athman. I’m in charge of coordinating interhouse sports between different houses and have fun playing sports with my friends weekly. During the winter and spring terms, I worked in the LIGO lab on campus under an electronics engineer, where I was tasked with building cool metal boxes and filling them with cooler electrical components. Currently, I’m working in Professor Linda Ye’s Quantum Materials Exploration Research Group, where we synthesize an array of materials and test them for various properties conducive to quantum computing and topological research applications. As is the case with many physicists, I’ve been down the rabbit hole of various philosophical schools of thought, so I’ve been reading a few of those books this summer.

Outside of the Caltech bubble, I love raving and going to other EDM events. I’ve seen Noizu, Meduza, and been to this year’s Hard Summer (FISHER + Chris Lake anyone??). I’m also an unapologetic big back, clocking close to 6 or 7 assorted trips to downtown LA for random late night food runs in the last 2 weeks of school (BCD Tofu House is a staple). I fill my time not spent on school/house activities with LEGOs and collecting Funko Pops, which I personally believe are amazing choices for room decor. Caltech’s location makes it really easy to get out and see all that LA has to offer, from the nearby Mt. Wilson with fun hiking trails to various museums that are typically free for college students.

I’m excited to be a part of the blog team, and future posts will probably involve a mix of ethical/philosophical applications of science/tech, music events I go to, and shenanigans that I get up to with my house.