Virtual Sigma 2020: Counselors

This will be my 8th year as a SigmaCounselor. My favorite part of the camp is interacting with all of the campers and staff, and I also love that Sigma is a learning experience for campers and staff alike. Every year I learn so many new things from lectures, tournaments, workshops, and just from talking to other people.

In 2021, I graduated from the University Chicago, where I studied math and computer science, and I currently live in Chicago and work as a trader. At my job I get to work on interesting projects of my choosing and I constantly apply principles of calculus, statistics, probability, and my (sadly pretty weak) programming skills to my work. Outside of work, I like to do gymnastics and I also volunteer as a cheerleading coach for my former college team. I also enjoy playing soccer, volleyball, and tennis, though I’m not very good at any of them.

Lev goes to NYU, and he was a member of the Harvard Undergraduate Aeronautics Club. He has attended Sigma camp as a camper 3 times and was a counselor before. Lev was a member of his high school's competitive Roblox team, and he participated in Quiz Bowl, math teams, and Science Olympiad. Other than STEM, Lev enjoys tennis, sailing, and environmental advocacy. During his time at SigmaCamp, he ran a workshop that taught people how to fly quadcopters and build rocket engines. Lev was a teacher's assistant at School Nova assisting a 7th-grade math class. In his spare time, Lev likes to build multirotors and destroy the patriarchy.

I am delighted to return to Sigma for my seventh year on the SigmaStaff, and ninth year overall. My academic interest falls at the intersection of marine science and microbiology - I split my time between studying marine vesicles and determining the key bacterial taxa and their contributions to chemoautotrophic and heterotrophic processes in the Eastern Tropical North Pacific oxygen minimum zone. Otherwise, I spend time thinking about viral gene transfer in the oceans or the role oceans play in the global carbon cycle. If that sounds interesting, feel free to find me and we'll talk. In my 'copious' free time, I enjoy making detailed abstract drawings, dancing, or training for the next spartan race. I’ve picked up ballroom dancing (after 12 years of ballet), and I'm down to try anything artsy or active. Looking forward to meeting everyone this year!

I am a graduate student studying physics at Harvard. I work on cooling atoms to ultracold temperatures (10^-10 Kelvin) in order to observe behavior similar to electrons in insulators. In particular I work with magnetic atoms that quantum tunnel to move around and interact at distances like tiny bar magnets. These atoms can realize exotic states of matter such as crystals that flow without resistance, as well as other collective phenomena.

In my spare time I can usually be found playing with my cats or skiing.

Hello everyone! I am a masters student at Boston University studying product design and manufacturing in the mechanical engineering department. I am passionate about developing clean technology and building a more sustainable world! After graduation, I hope to work as a design engineer streamlining clean technology commercialization. Outside of academics, I love to rock climb, do yoga, ski, and generally spend time outdoors. I am also a big reader and love making and viewing art. But that’s enough about me, I want to learn about your passions! Find me at camp to talk to about anything and everything. I am so excited to return to Sigma for another summer and help make this an unforgettable week for all the incoming campers, as my counselors once did for me!

I am currently a grad student studying quantum gravity and string theory, primarily based at Stanford University but also spending a lot of time at the University of Cambridge in the UK. My primary research interests are in how the fabric of spacetime emerges from strongly interacting chaotic quantum systems, and in the nature of black hole microstates within these systems. At Sigma this year I will teach two semilabs - one on Cosmology (the study of the history and eventual fate of our universe) and one on black holes and how we think about them from both a classical and a quantum perspective.

I am always very approachable, especially if you want to chat about physics or hear me rant about tennis :-)

My background is in physics and biophysics, but now I work as a project manager at Beyond Meat. I work closely with food scientists and research scientists, as well as teams outside of the R&D department, to make sure new projects are on track and meeting key targets. I develop processes to improve communication and make frequent and important tasks easier and more fool-proof. I think of myself as someone on a curling team — smoothing the ice in front of the stone, and calling out when course-corrections are needed. On the dance floor, I also practice improving communication and coordination processes. I enjoy blues, fusion, west coast swing, tango, and contra dancing. I also run a monthly contra dance, and I’m president of a local dance cooperative.

This will be my 8th year with Sigma, and whether I’ve met you before or we’re meeting for the first time, I’m looking forward to seeing you!

Andrey is a Postdoctoral Fellow at Oxford University and has been at SigmaCamp since the very beginning. He completed his PhD in Mathematics at MIT. Andrey am always open to chat about math, physics, or computer science! He greatly enjoy board games, puzzles, square dancing, and contra. Andrey's research is in quantum computing and quantum information theory. He am investigating how to reformulate the study of quantum error-correcting codes by using graphs.

Hey! I'm a Mechanical Engineering student at UWaterloo. I have been at Sigma since the third year that it ran, and I've loved it every single year. I really enjoy mathematics and engineering, I design 3D models as a hobby. I love to play frisbee, run, and cycle. I also enjoy algorithmic programming and finding creative solutions to clever problems. With a fair bit of experience doing math contests, feel free to discuss tricky questions with me! I really enjoy problems involving logical deduction and math. As always, I'm really excited to see you all at camp this year!

Hello! I am currently getting a master's degree in Neurobiology and Behavior, working in a lab that studies how neurons talk to each other at a synaptic level in the brain. That said, my passion is for translational medical research, so ultimately, I hope to go to medical school. Outside of academics, I volunteer as an EMT in my community, love to ski, and can most often be found hiding away with a good book. At SigmaCamp, I do a variety of things, from taking photos of everyone to helping with the chamber concert. By far though, my favorite part is meeting all the campers, greeting old and new faces alike. I look forward to seeing you all soon!

I am a graduate student seeking a PhD. in Biomedical Engineering. I obtained my undergraduate degree in Instrumentation and Control Engineering in India. Thereafter, I worked in the Oil and Gas industry for about a year before coming to graduate school. I am currently working on computational modeling and experimental validation of prefrontal-limbic and reward control circuits in the human brain, in the context of psychiatric disorders and addiction. Aside from academics, I spend my time on table-tennis, piano or cooking.

My PhD work was related to making nanoscale optical structures and manipulating quantum states of individuals atoms, with the goal of contributing to the world-wide effort on making optical quantum computers -- I'm continuing along the same lines now as postdoc. When I go to Sigma, I like to bring with me various tech contraptions so we can take them apart. I don't know yet what we will breaking into this year. Together with Melissa Guidry, I teach the Optics semilab. This year, we will be using light to do measurements and computations, in particular, image processing using Fourier transforms.

I have come to Sigma Camp as a student since the very beginning, and have felt how fun and interesting this camp truly is. I love to discuss and hypothesis different crazy ideas, something like constructing a large scale Stirling engine that would run from the equator and down to Antarctica, thus producing the much needed energy for the human race. I would love to listen to other people's amazing ideas, even if they are as unrealistic as mine. I am currently pursuing my Bachelor degree in Computer Science at Georgia Institute of Technology. Outside of my studies, I love playing music, running, and sometime rock climbing!

Hi I'm Tarika! I work in finance making pricing and predictive models. I have a master's in CS and bachelor's in mathematics from the University of Chicago and I like games + puzzles!

It is going to be my first Sigma as Doctor Nikitina. Overall, it is actually my 10th season! For the last five years, my research has been connected with human stem cells. After spending a PhD growing beating heart tissue in a dish, I decided to pivot towards growing tiny brains in a dish, and it only got more exciting! Apart from growing human tissue in the lab I do biological data analysis, play guitar, sing and dance a lot!

Hello! I’ve been to Sigma 4 times as a camper, and I can’t be more excited to come back in a slightly different role. My scientific interest includes math, economics (it is my specialty in school) and biology (especially microbiology). But science is not the only thing I like, I also love debating and poetry. I am from Russia, so coming every year was not too easy, but it is totally worth it, I really do love this place and I am excited to help you same way about it.

Tim Pinkhassik is originally from Newton, MA. He is pursuing a B.S. in Chemistry. Tim works on synthesizing copper—oxalamide precatalyst complexes to catalyze the Goldberg reaction. Beyond his research, Tim enjoys organic synthesis for fun and profit, film photography, learning languages, and playing piano and balalaika.

This will be my fourth year as a Counselor at Sigma, and I couldn't be more excited to meet all of you! I study computer science, and I'm particularly interested in robotics, programming languages, and algorithm development. I speak Tamil, French, Korean, and a little Russian (though I'm still learning!). I’m an avid reader of both fiction and nonfiction; come talk to me for book recommendations! I also practice several combat sports, including boxing, wrestling, and Muay Thai. I enjoy debating (I am on my school's team), and greatly enjoy stimulating discussion. More than anything, though, I treasure getting to know you as a camper and connecting with you about your own interests and experiences. I can't wait to see you at Sigma!

Hi y'all! I'm pursuing my master's degree in biomedical engineering at Rutgers University. I'm interested in tissue engineering, gene therapy, biomaterials and machine learning. I'm also a huge fan of linguistics and enjoy learning about cognitive science. I enjoy rock climbing and love to read new poetry. I play piano and guitar and am learning to play the accordion. If you'd like to sing a song together at Sigma, be my guest! I can't wait to get to know all of you this year.

Hello, I'm super excited to be back for another year as a counselor at Sigma! I am a Masters student at New York University studying electrical engineering. At NYU I am part of a research lab that works on applications of virtual reality to solve real world problems, and my internship this and last summer has been focused on creating computer vision software for unmanned underwater vehicles. In my spare time I enjoy making art (digital or paint), playing board/card/tabletop games, and crafting (I've run workshops on origami, sewing, and kumihimo, a kind of cord braid). I look forward to meeting all of you at camp this summer!

Hello, I'm Nestor and I'm very excited to return to as a counselor! My primary work is as a professional ChatGPT impersonator, but on the side I'm a founder of a food robotics startup called Rito. I also love philosophy, iced lattes, and hot takes.

I am personally very interested in physics, technology, and entrepreneurship. I do everything from building burrito-making robots and creating levitating vehicles to shocking people to make them dance.

I love meeting new people and enjoy understanding how others think, and always appreciate interesting discussions on any topic, from questions of morality to cultural trends, so feel free to talk to me about anything!

Hello everyone! I am Ivanka, and I am in my 3rd year at the University of Toronto. I have been going to Sigma for almost as long as it has existed. I am interested in math, (especially graph theory), and anything that has an engine in it. In my free time, you can find me working on my car, playing Magic the Gathering/ Dungeons and Dragons, or relaxing with a book. I can't wait to meet everyone and hear all about you guys!

Hi! I am a PhD student at the University of Toronto in the department of electrical and computer engineering and I've been at Sigma since 2019. My research lies in the field of laser fabrication of sensing devices in optical fibers for astronomical applications. I am also interested in biology and chemistry and I am looking forward to discussing everyone’s science-related (and otherwise!) interests and ideas. Outside academics, I enjoy reading, yoga, baking, and embroidery.

My name is Misha Zorya, I have recently graduated from Rutgers University with a Dual Major in Actuarial Science and Mathematics. I have been attending Sigma since the beginning and I am excited to attend this year as well. In my spare time I enjoy creating and maintaining terrariums and aquariums, playing card/board games/video games, and also assisting in the development of a video game. I look forward to seeing all of you in the summer!