Unlocking the Natural World’s Secrets

ANISH PANDYA, Physics Junior

Anish Pandya is a physics junior, researching in the lab of William Gilpin.

Interviewed by Emily Engelbart.

Why did you choose UT?
I’m from Austin and grew up around UT. During my sophomore year of high school, I won the Austin Regional Science Fair for my project on encoding information within the frequency of pulsing LEDs. I received a scholarship to do research over the summer. The summer after the science fair, I worked in the Vertebrate Interactome Mapping research stream, as a participant in the Freshman Research Initiative’s High School Research Academy. My project was about mutations in RBM10, a protein that regulates a process called alternative splicing, and its potential to cause disease, specifically some forms of cancer. Being in the lab was a great experience and solidified my passion for research. I chose UT Austin because I fell in love with scientific research, and UT Austin has strong undergraduate research opportunities and good academics.

“The equations we write for complicated living systems are nonlinear.”

Tell me about your research interests.
I’m interested in capturing amazing living phenomena using physics. Many times, the equations we write for complicated living systems – such as biological cells, multicellular organisms and interactions in an ecosystem – are nonlinear. I’m interested in using computing and physics to uncover information about living systems. In the Gilpin Lab, I study nonlinear physics, which is interesting because it presents tangible questions. It’s about things that you can see and experience, like fluid flow, climate science and biology. For example, Professor Gilpin published this really cool paper about how baby starfish feed in the ocean.

How has your time at UT affected you?
I’m proud of how much I’ve grown as a person. When coming to UT, I thought I’d be totally comfortable, but I’ve experienced times of discomfort. But that adds to the learning process. I’m proud of the person, researcher and scientist I’ve become so far. For example, in the fall 2022 semester, someone vandalized the pride flag in the PMA lounge. I got involved as part of the Society of Physics Students, which, along with the Astronomy Students Association and Gender Minorities in Physics, responded with outreach. We created door tags with reassuring messages about solidarity. They were used on campus and in West Texas at the McDonald Observatory, where we heard there were very positive responses.

How are you involved in campus life?
I’m the president of the Society of Physics Students and was the outreach coordinator previously. I organized a physics demonstration room for UT’s STEM Girl Day. The demos aimed to get students excited about a variety of physics topics. The ones that made the most noise had to do with standing waves. More generally, we had an assortment of noisy physics demos from mechanics. We wanted to spark students’ curiosity about STEM, especially underrepresented students. We let students interact with the demos and explained the science concepts behind them. I’m now the undergraduate research co-chair for the UT Senate of College Councils, which does university-wide academic advocacy, and its new membership director.

What are your future plans?
I’d like to go to graduate school and pursue a career in academia. My interests lie in this area of physics where I can investigate new questions and contribute to our understanding of the natural world.