The Art of Microwaving Food at MIT
How to avoid inviting harmful chemicals to your table
My mom has been in the fertility business for more than ten years, developing solutions to ease the exhausting hormonal treatments required before in vitro fertilization. She introduced me to the concept of EDCs, or endocrine disruptor chemicals, which can interfere with the hormonal response of living beings. These hormone-mimicking chemicals are commonly found in […]
How can Philosophy Help Policy?
How I stepped outside my comfort zone and attended courses outside my research area
Before coming to MIT, I had no idea how much courses outside my field could influence my research and shape my intellectual beliefs. I had earned a bachelor’s in Mechanical Engineering and a master’s in Earth and Atmospheric Sciences with a minor in public policy. I had also worked with the Government of India on […]
My First Autopsy
The importance of seeing the reality of death
As the autopsy technician split the cadaver’s chest open with a scalpel, a part of my identity that I had wrestled with since my undergrad finally settled into focus. I have absolutely no desire to become a doctor. This has not always been the case. Like many of my peers, I had started my undergraduate […]
Venturing Into My Comfort Zone
When research and travel go hand in hand
Travelling is one of my favorite things to do, so I’m always excited when I get to travel for work. Since I’m a Ph.D. student in atmospheric chemistry in the environmental engineering department, you might think that my work naturally lends itself to performing research in the field. However, I do most of my work […]
Wasting My Degree
Why is having kids, moving out of the city, and following an unusual path a waste?
“She’s worried you’ll waste your degree.” My friend (let’s call her Anna) relays this message to me as coming from another friend, but I can tell from her tone of voice that she’s clearly worrying about the same potential waste. That makes the question doubly irritating. As if pretending to be merely the messenger could […]
