One of the incredible advantages of attending Princeton is being able to witness, learn about, and occasionally participate in world-class research. For example, Princeton physicists are heavily involved in diverse pursuits including the quest for the Higgs boson,  the development of quantum computing, and efforts to harness mechanisms used in the sun to bring safe, clean, and cheap energy to Earth.

I’m particularly interested in this last area, which is fusion research. Basically, fusion creates energy by putting two atomic nuclei together. Many scientists think the best way for this reaction to occur is in plasmas, which are ionized gases.

 

Research on this sort of fusion occurs at Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, located a short distance from campus. PPPL is technically a U.S. Department of Energy laboratory, but it is run by Princeton and many scientists do research there and teach at Princeton.

Last semester, I decided to use my JP (see Cricket's great post about JPs here) to get to know this laboratory and its work a little better.

I worked with Professor Nathaniel Fisch, who is an authority on how waves move in plasmas and how these waves can be used to heat plasmas and to drive currents that are necessary to control the plasmas. 

Professor Fisch gave me a project that involved looking at how altering the position from which these waves are launched can influence how good they are at achieving their goals. To do this, I had to learn a lot about the physics of plasma waves and also about the computational tools that physicists use to simulate wave propagation.

After completing my JP, I really understand how plasma physicists go about approaching this type of problem. I'm excited to learn and participate more, and I'm thus considering an internship next summer at PPPL.

Studying abroad in London the summer before my senior year was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life! I was inspired to visit London during my junior year, after taking an amazing Shakespeare course with English Professor Russ Leo (he’s fantastic). The class, which explored some of Shakespeare’s earlier works, was one of the best classes I have taken at Princeton.

My favorite lectures were about the theater culture in London during the late 1500s. I was particularly fascinated by the history of the Globe Theatre, where Shakespeare staged some of his productions. Immediately after taking this course, I researched summer programs that would give me the opportunity to finally visit the famous Globe. I decided to join The Duke in London-Drama program because it offered two courses taught by the lovely and brilliant theater Professor Sarah Beckwith.

Over the course of six weeks, I saw more than 30 professional shows in London including dramas, comedies, musicals, and an opera! One of my favorites was, of course, the Globe’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” production. I also had a lot of free time, which allowed me to explore many parts of the city. I checked out several museums, had a ton of tea, and took plenty of pictures. One of the best parts about being in London was meeting up with other Princetonians. One of my friends, Dinora ’12, currently lives in London, and when she found out I was there, we quickly made plans to meet. One sunny morning (yes, London can be sunny, and it was surprisingly warm while I was there...), I met her and a few of her Princeton friends over a delicious English breakfast. 

 

They met through the Princeton Association UK, which hosts social events for young Princeton alumni in London. They each had nothing but positive things to say about their experience with the Princeton network while abroad. They emphasized that being able to hang out with other Princetonians made their time in London even better. I found this to be true after meeting up with a couple other Princeton undergraduates who were also working or studying at London that summer. Knowing I have a Princeton family in the theater capital of the world makes me all the more eager to return! 

 

Think about what you think you want to be when you grow up!

JP (junior paper). Never have these two letters been the source of so much anxiety, stress, and worry.

Coming to Princeton, I knew I would eventually have to face independent work. As a freshman, the very idea of a thesis was terrifying to me. How could I possibly say anything of any importance to anyone in the world, especially when I could barely manage to find my way around campus?

To be honest, the idea working one-on-one with a faculty adviser on independent research was part of the reason I chose to come to Princeton over larger schools of the same caliber, where it would be more difficult (or impossible) to have that kind of opportunity. Yet, when I found the reality of independent work looming over me this year, I was beginning to wonder why I thought this was such a good idea after all.

Typically, Princeton students in the Bachelor of Arts program will write two small independent papers in their junior year. Generally, one of these papers is closely related to the independent research they will focus on for their senior thesis. (Engineering students also have a requirement for a senior thesis or independent project, but typically aren’t required to participate in junior independent work.)

When the year started, I was so scared. I needed to write a short fall JP and also choose an adviser for my spring JP and senior thesis by December 2. Who should my adviser be? What should my topic be? What question should I ask? Where do I even begin? Most of my friends had similar fears. We felt overwhelmed and unprepared and thought we could never do it.

And it has been hard. But it’s completely manageable, and I have found overwhelming support from my department and certificate representatives, potential advisers, former professors, and students in the program. And now, as the semester is nearing an end, I have seen something more important than our complaints and worries over deadlines and meetings. When my friends tell me about their work, I sense their pride in what they have accomplished. When they tell me about their topics for their senior thesis, I sense their excitement in what they’ll be doing. There’s something incredibly fulfilling about saying you have worked on something that no one else has worked on, and about having the ability to focus on what is important to you. I know that I, personally, have had a lot of fun thinking about the evolutionary basis for human moral systems.

JP. Never have two letters been the source of such inspiration, reflection, and excitement.

If you are thinking about coming to the United States for college, congratulations! The liberal arts education in the U.S. is truly world class. Yet if you are worried about whether your non-native English ability can handle the rigorous course load, you are not alone. The academic writing at Princeton calls for such high caliber research and critical thinking that it makes things especially difficult for internationals who are not used to writing papers in American style.

Fortunately, the Princeton writing seminar, a required course for first-year students, comes to the rescue. Although not designed specifically for internationals, it serves the crucial purpose as an introduction to writing well. In the writing seminar, we learned about thesis, motive, transition, outline/reverse outline and so on. We critiqued each other’s papers and learned to navigate Firestone Library to write a research paper. My writing seminar professor was everything one could ask for: She did not lower her expectation even a bit for me just because I'm international, yet she was extremely patient and provided me with helpful feedback in every stage of writing.

I should also mention the writing center located in the basement of Whitman College. From brainstorming to finding a working thesis, and from writing papers to lab reports, writing center fellows were able to assist me in numerous ways. Whether I encountered writer's block, could not articulate a confusing concept, or simply wanted someone to read over my draft, in this hour-long, one-on-one session, the fellows helped address my specific questions. The writing center is open seven days a week and accepts both online appointments and drop-ins.

Bottom line is it takes a while to get used to American academic writing, yet resources to help us abound.

My roommate calls the day the registrar posts classes for the next semester my “mid-semester crisis.” From that day, right up until the moment when I register during the last week of classes, I will spend unholy amounts of time planning, re-planning, rethinking and rearranging my course options.