Mathematics provide us with the most clear and unbiased view of the world, allowing our thoughts and innovations to come to life. I have always been drawn to math, the reoccurring patterns and techniques having a certain flow that I have always enjoyed. The translation of pure theoretical equations to their application in engineering projects is one of the most rewarding experiences I've ever had. I've had the privilege of competing in quite a few different engineering projects over the years. The most rewarding, however, is easily been the national CanSat Competition, hosted by the American Astronautical Society. Through the competition, I was able to explore the actual process of applying mathematical equations and principles to the construction of a physical payload. Being able to build something on a team with a similar passion for math allowed us to enact our own concepts into reality. Numbers on the page jumped into the real world after time and effort and became 3d-modeled structures and printed circuit boards. The competition was an oddly grounding experience. It was a reminder that even though the world can sometimes seem confusing, it is still grounded in the most concrete ideas. If you launch a payload into the sky, it will come down; gravity says so after all. But, you can slow it down, through a variety of methods. We designed two parachutes, each with their own specific fall speed to be deployed at different times. We designed a stabilization method, calculated to rotate the payload at the correct speed to maintain maximum efficiency. It is through math that we are able to enact our own changes onto the world. It is also through math that we are able to truly understand our world, and this is applicable to other areas in life as well. Math gives us the opportunity to quantify beliefs and allows us to see what is opinion and what is fact. Quantitative literacy is closely-tied with critical thinking, because even learning basic concepts in math gives us tools to apply to real world scenarios. The actual process for solving an integral might not be always useful, but the creative process we develop by manipulating the numbers is always useful. One of the most important skills to be learned in math is pattern recognition, seeing the world through the lenses of something else. Being able to notice and recognize the underlying "u" value for an iterated integral, really seeing the initial function and its corresponding "du", is not to dissimilar from being able to recognize the same kind of core personality being applied to a different scenario. Once you realize that these sort of nested ideas exist in math, you start seeing them everywhere. Symbols are embedded in films, power dynamics are embedded in international politics. Math asks that you look at an equation, a problem, break it down into its core components and evaluate what effect they have on the others. In my CanSat competition, the payload unfortunately didn't completely survive. We failed to recognize a specific stress point that caused the lower half of our structure to shatter on impact in testing. However, through the use of pattern recognition, we were able to design a soft bed system inside the cargo bay itself that saved the electronics board. All that data that went up 350 feet survived the fall, all because we recognized the effects of different systems on each other. It is through patterns that we truly begin to see the similarities of our reality and start to plan for the best.

Calculus provides us with the fundamental building blocks for approaching all other STEM fields, both through their foundation of the math required for multiple other courses and as the purest example of the problem-solving skills all other fields build upon. I have always been drawn to Calculus, the reoccurring patterns and techniques having a certain flow that I have always enjoyed. These patterns that are found in Calculus are found in all other STEM fields from biology to chemistry to physics. Beyond just its usefulness and heavy ties to other fields, from pure physics o=to the more grounded engineering, Calculus gives us the opportunity to practice incredibly important problem-solving skills. Quantitative literacy is closely-tied with critical thinking, because even learning basic concepts in calculus gives us tools to apply to other fields of study as well. The actual process for solving an integral might not be always useful, but the creative process we develop by manipulating the numbers is always useful. One of the most important skills to be learned in Calculus is pattern recognition, seeing the world through the lenses of something else. Being able to notice and recognize the underlying "u" value for an iterated integral, really seeing the initial function and its corresponding "du", is not to dissimilar from being able to recognize the same kind of core personality being applied to a different scenario. Once you realize that these sort of nested ideas exist in Calculus , you start seeing them everywhere. Sensors are embedded in systems, variables are nested in lines of code. Calculus asks that you look at an equation, a problem, break it down into its core components and evaluate what effect they have on the others. Perhaps most importantly, a solid understanding of Calculus allows for the modeling of the work done in all other fields. To be able to solidly predict the real world, scientists rely on the manipulations of number and variables that represent the function of reality. Without Calculus, one could not probably model the physics of a space station or movement of an electron or the neural pathways of a brain (both organic and q-learning). Calculus is the way scientists break down the world into manageable pieces and compare the way the interlock to make up our reality. It is used to model the complex relationships between forces and objects. Without Calculus, our understanding of patterns and relationships would be far less effective, making it one of the most essential tools in any STEM majors toolbox.

I have to say the thing I love most about myself is the passion that I feel for everything I do. Growing up, a lot of teenagers, especially young women, are told to not talk to loudly or seem to eager, that it leaves "a bad impression." This and a general sense of anxiety left me as a very quiet young girl growing up, as I was often too reserved to share the things I loved with friends and other students. Over time though, with the help of my mother, I gained confidence and now I approach everything I do with passion. It's the best way to experience the world, where you truly love and are invested in everything you touch. Since then, I've often gotten complaints that I talk too loudly or too much, or just general "why do you care so much, it's not real" when I discuss the things I love, be them books, films, and everything in between. What I've realized since then though is that it's okay to have strong opinions on even the most stupid things, so long as you love the things you're doing. Waking up every day, knowing that there is something out there for me to enjoy, makes everything a little bit better.

My favorite scientific discovery would have to be the discovery of zombie stars. The phenomenon occurs in a binary star systems, where two stars, a white dwarf and comparison star, orbit around each other. In this scenario, the white star strips mass off the back of the comparison star, feasting on its fuel to maintain a semblance of life. This results in a Type Iax supernova, leaving half of the star still standing once the dust settles. The fuel from the comparison star essentially allows it to survive beyond death, giving the white dwarf the nickname of zombie star. This particular discovery is indicative of so many things that I love about science. The unpredictability of the outer regions of space, the possibility of paradigm-shifting discoveries, and the overall sense that there is still so much to learn, not just in space, but science in general. The zombie star exists because of a unique combination of many different factors and through our understanding and study of those factors, we are learning and observing new phenomenon every day.

Mathematics provide us with the most clear and unbiased view of the world, allowing our thoughts and innovations to come to life. I have always been drawn to math, the reoccurring patterns and techniques having a certain flow that I have always enjoyed. The translation of pure theoretical equations to the application in engineering projects is one of the most rewarding experiences I've ever had. I've had the privilege of competing in quite a few different engineering projects over the years. The most rewarding, however, is easily been the national CanSat Competition, hosted by the American Astronautical Society. Through the competition, I was able to explore the actual process of applying mathematical equations and principles to the construction of a physical payload. Being able to build something on a team with a similar passion for math allowed us to enact our own concepts into reality. Numbers on the page jumped into the real world after time and effort and became 3d-modeled structures and printed circuit boards. The competition was an oddly grounding experience. It was a reminder that even though the world can sometimes seem confusing, it is still grounded in the most concrete ideas. If you launch a payload into the sky, it will come down; gravity says so after all. But, you can slow it down, through a variety of methods. We designed two parachutes, each with their own specific fall speed to be deployed at different times. We designed a stabilization method, calculated to rotate the payload at the correct speed to maintain maximum efficiency. It is through math that we are able to enact our own changes onto the world. It is also through math that we are able to truly understand our world, and this applies to other areas in life as well. Math gives us the opportunity to quantify beliefs and allows us to see what is an opinion and what is a fact. Quantitative literacy is closely-tied with critical thinking, because even learning basic concepts in math gives us tools to apply to real world scenarios. The actual process for solving an integral might not be always useful, but the creative process we develop by manipulating the numbers is always useful. One of the most important skills to be learned in math is pattern recognition, seeing the world through the lenses of something else. Being able to notice and recognize the underlying "u" value for an iterated integral, really seeing the initial function and its corresponding "du", is not to dissimilar from being able to recognize the same kind of core personality being applied to a different scenario. Once you realize that these sort of nested ideas exist in math, you start seeing them everywhere. Symbols are embedded in films, power dynamics are embedded in international politics. Math asks that you look at an equation, a problem, break it down into its core components and evaluate what effect they have on the others. In my CanSat competition, the payload, unfortunately, didn't completely survive. We failed to recognize a specific stress point that caused the lower half of our structure to shatter on impact in testing. However, through the use of pattern recognition, we were able to design a soft bed system inside the cargo bay itself that saved the electronics board. All that data that went up 350 feet survived the fall, all because we recognized the effects of different systems on each other. It is through patterns that we truly begin to see the similarities of our reality and start to plan for the best.