Erik Nordquist

Erik Nordquist

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

UMB Ramp Lunch & Learn

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I volunteered at the UMB RAMP program’s May Lunch & Learn activity, where a UMB researcher meets with a small group of high school students to discuss their researhc, career development and trajectory, and then give a demonstration with a hands-on activity. The students played a short game of Monte Carlo pi estimation in person, then we wrote some python code to do the same thing. While not directly related to molecular simulation, it relates a few key ideas, like how seemingly “random” events can converge on a stable value, or how useful computers can be to iterate over a simple, repeatable arithmetic task.

(update) I’ve since done versions of this demo or activities many times with the UMB RAMP program, UMB CURE program, and the Baltimore Underground Science Space, or BUGSS. Looking forward to the next event…

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Postdoc Service Award

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I was awarded the Postdoctoral Fellow Excellence in Service Award. It was a great honor to be recognized by the University for all the work I do with outreach to local students. I love interacting with student of all ages, including young kids at an annual halloween event, middle-school kids with a mix of youthful energy and a sense of responsibility for important questions, and high-schoolers who are starting to imagine their role in society and solving hard problems. Read more

Best of Biophysical Journal 2023!

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My paper on hydrophobic dewetting, published with Jianhan and Zhiguang, was selected as one of twenty articles in the Best of Biophysical Journal 2023! This is a big honor, and feels immensely gratifying! This was essentially my first attempt to guide the direction of a research project more directly, although Jianhan of course provided many mission-critical suggestions and corrections at every phase of the project. The honor came as a surprise since none of us knew about the honor until seeing the issue in print after the BPS Annual Meeting in Philadelphia. Check it out! Read more

PhD Dissertation Defense

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I gave my final PhD dissertation defense on Monday, June 5th 2023. This was a very special day, and week, to reflect on the work I’ve done and the progress I’ve made as a scientist, and to share that progress with my family, friends, and the academic community here in Amherst. It’s been a wonderful and challenging expeirence. Read more