SigmaCamp 2022: 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.

This is going to be my third year at SigmaCamp as a counselor and I'm excited to join this wonderful community! I'm studying theoretical physics at YITP in Stony Brook. My research interests include mathematical physics, black-hole perturbation theory, and phenomenological string theory. I practice a very hands-on approach and like to use programming as a way to tackle some hard mathematical problems. In my spare time, I like to stay active (strength training, BJJ) and sometimes cook. I did play different musical instruments in the past, including cello and drums (hopefully I will do it again in the future).

Hello! I am excited to come back for another great year of Sigma! I am a BIO-ECE PhD student at UT Austin. Outside of my studies, I am interested in material science and additive manufacturing. I play the violin, like to enjoy bad movies, and build janky contraptions. I can't wait to see everyone at the next Sigma Camp.

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.

Hello! I am Iris and I am currently finishing my Master's in Business Analytics at MIT Sloan School of Management while also working on my capstone project with Massachusetts Financial Services. I am really interested in data science and in the business side of the tech industry, specifically how we can make product development and production more efficient. I am highly involved in STEM tutoring for girls and how to better encourage more women to pursue their STEM careers. Outside of academics, I love music, dance, art, and baking. I am excited to help make this week unforgettable for all of you!

Hey! I attended Sigma as a camper for 5 years before returning as a counselor. This will mark my third year as a counselor. I'm interested in math and engineering, and I am studying computer science at Northeastern University. Outside of school, I fence, play various video and card games, and have recently picked up chess. I can't wait to see you all at Sigma this summer!

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!

Hi—thanks for reading my bio! I've come to Sigma for 9 years now: 5 as a camper and 4 (and counting) as a counselor! Having been on both sides, I can confidently say that although Sigma is only one week of your summer, it’s definitely the best one. There’s nothing quite like it. I am pursuing a Biomedical Engineering degree at Cornell University, with a concentration in either drug delivery, imaging, or biomechanics. In previous years, I’ve taught a workshop on Brain-Computer Interfaces, where we explore the brain via a computational lens and even demonstrate a form of “mind control.” There’s so much we don’t know about the human brain, and therefore so much to learn! Aside from that, I enjoy piano, skiing (recently picked up snowboarding), and *learning* electric guitar. I can't wait to meet all of you at Sigma 2023!

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! I'm currently pursuing an engineering degree at the University of Washington. My interests include chemistry, math, classical guitar, skiing, watercolor painting, and creating banana bread that consists of 50% chocolate. Since last SigmaCamp, I've learned how to solve a Rubik's cube, so I'm excited to see how much faster you all are at it than me. :)

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! As a camper, I've been to Sigma for 5 years, and I'm excited to come to my second year at Sigma as a counselor! Academically, I'm mainly interested in cryptography, and I also spend a lot of time doing non-geometrical math. In my free time, I enjoy hiking, biking, reading, and sharing my love of math with everyone around me. I look forwards to meeting everyone this summer and finding even more people with which to share my interests!

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.

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!

I have been a camper or counselor at Sigma Camp since its inaugural year and hopefully for years to come. Throughout the years I've attended Sigma, I have graduated high school, attended Cornell for my undergraduate degree and started a PhD at Stony Brook University in the Computer Science department. I work with robotics or programming semi-labs and set up sports and events like Chessball. I look forward to meeting you all and don't hesitate to come talk with me about any of your scientific or sporting interests.

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!

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.

I've been coming to Sigma since the beginning, and I'm really excited to be here for another year. I’m a grad student at MIT studying biological engineering. Outside of STEM, I'm interested in history, mineral water, and linguistics. I also really enjoy playing racket sports, my favorite being Wii Sports tennis, and I'm looking forward to organizing the ping pong tournament at Sigma again. I’m also looking forward to another season of swimming - I’m a big Silver Lake enthusiast. Can’t wait to see everyone this summer!

Hi everyone! My name is Iana, and I’ve been with Sigma since the very beginning — first as a junior camper, then as a camper for six years, and now as a counselor. My main interests lie within mechanical engineering, particularly in robotics and manufacturing engineering. In my freetime I enjoy running, hiking, embroidering, and just spending time relaxing in the sun. I am almost always listening to music (of virtually any genre) and I'd love to hear any recommendations. I can't wait to meet you all this summer!

Hi! My name is Michelle, or Mishka for short. I've been at Sigma since its first year in 2012, first as a camper and later as a counselor. Very excited to be back for Sigma2022 and can't wait to meet everyone! I recently graduated Tufts University with a neuroscience degree and am now working in analytics and marketing at a health-tech startup. I'm really interested in artificial intelligence and the ways in which it applies to disciplines ranging from human psychology to philosophy to data science. I have various hobbies including music (my first love and the reason I run the Talent Show every year!), tennis, ballroom dance, learning languages, and cooking. Come talk to me about anything and everything. :)

I was a SigmaCamper from 2016-2020, and was a counselor in 2021. I am really interested in physics, mathematics, and the vast variety of applications of those fields. I also enjoy playing the violin, cycling, and taking pictures. If you know any cool physics problems, I would love to discuss them. I look forward to seeing everyone at SigmaCamp this year!

Hello! I'm Anna, and I can't wait for my second Sigma as a counselor and my fifth overall! Right after camp, I'll be heading down to Atlanta to start my sophomore year at Georgia Tech, where I'm majoring in environmental engineering with a public policy minor. While my main focus is in climate data and modeling, I'd love to chat about anything from spreadsheets to robotics to why tea is the superior beverage (I'm drinking chai as I write this). When I'm not furthering my quest to do far too many things, you can find me making music (I play viola and sing), reading a good book, or searching for the perfect thrift.

Daniel is an undergraduate studying Math and Physics. He spends his time trying to learn things and then teach them to other people, and he tells himself he'll find an interesting research project soon. Lately, he has also been thinking about psychology-backed teaching practices and how to mathematically derive morality. He has been at Sigma forever, and can be found reorganizing board games, locking other people into rooms full of puzzles, and playing the saxophone (poorly) at the chamber concert. Daniel wants to hear your thoughts on life and/or give you fun math problems/puzzles, so you should come say hello :)

Hi! I’m so excited to return for my seventh year at Sigma and second year as a counselor! Next year I will begin as an undergraduate studying violin performance and math. My research is in geometry, but I love to discuss everything STEM, humanities, and music! Outside of academics, I enjoy puzzles, reading (especially philosophy), and playing guitar and theremin (somewhat poorly). I can’t wait to see everyone!

I am excited to attend my sixth year at Sigma. I will be starting my second year at McGill University in the fall. Before coming to Montreal, I lived near Boston and before that, in State College, Pennsylvania. I love physics and math, and my favorite part of math is whatever I happen to have last learned. I enjoy learning languages, whether human or programming, and am always up to learn something new. If you come find me during one of the breaks, I'll teach you how to crochet.

Hello! I have been at SigmaCamp since 2014 as a camper. I just finished my second year of college at Cooper Union in New York. I am majoring in electrical engineering with a minor in computer science. My passions include physics, robotics, and history. I love outdoor sports such as soccer, tennis, and hiking, but I also love ping-pong and rock climbing. I am very excited to be a part of the camp this year and am eager to meet you all!

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 Alexey, this will be my 5th time at Sigma, and my second as a counselor! I am majoring in electrical engineering and do research on energy efficient computing in batteryless systems ranging from drones to nanosatellites. Outside of that, I do props design at a theater, sailing, and photography, as well as anything outside (hiking, rock climbing, skiing, biking, etc) Please talk to me about anything, I love learning what other people are passionate about!

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 was a camper at Sigma for five years and am so excited to return for another year as a counselor! I just finished studying Biomedical Engineering and Applied Math & Statistics at Stony Brook University, and I will be pursuing a Master's in BME in the fall. Beyond STEM, I love Broadway (I've directed a play!), making music (piano and flute), and reading (Lord of the Rings is the best!), among other things. Come talk to me about anything - I'm always interested in learning something new!

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!

I'm so excited for my third year at Sigma! I just finished my undergraduate degree at the University of Toronto where I studied mathematics, computer science and physics, and I'm thrilled to start my PhD in computer science at Boston University this fall! I'm interested in algorithm design, computational complexity theory and combinatorics, and I've also written software used by large radio telescopes. Outside of academics, I spend my time developing video games, playing the piano, biking, and learning German. Come talk to me about anything; you'll likely find me near the piano.

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.