Introducing Students from the Seventh VIPER Class
Andy Eskenazi is from Buenos Aires, Argentina, and graduated from St. Andrew's Scots School as part of the class of 2017. Thanks to the motivations from his grandpa, he has always been fascinated by the role of energy in the world, from powering transportation to cities. This has led him to pursue a degree in Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics and Mathematics, to someday be able to use the knowledge acquired in VIPER to help solve current energy issues. Besides doing experiments in his free time, Andy enjoys playing tennis and cycling, as well as competing on Mariokart tournaments, playing the piano, and learning Mandarin.
Emma Glasser is from Princeton, New Jersey, and graduated from Princeton High School. She plans on studying Materials Science and Engineering and Earth and Environmental Science. Emma developed an interest in sustainability after learning about the catastrophic impacts of climate change which motivated her to pursue a career addressing this issue. Through most of high school, she researched a carbon negative biomass to hydrogen process with the Park Research Group at Columbia University. Emma joined VIPER aspiring to make a contribution to necessary innovations in renewable energy. In her free time, she enjoys listening to music, playing tennis, spending time with friends, and engaging in activism.
Jason Jiang is from Pearland, Texas, and graduated from Glenda Dawson High School in 2018. He intends to major in Systems Science and Engineering and Physics. In NASA’s High School Aerospace program, Jason presented designs addressing deep space conditions for a mock Mars mission after research on protective materials and the Sabatier process for energy and water production. Through VIPER, Jason hopes to explore his passion for science and engineering to maximize energy efficiency and sustainability. When he’s not working, Jason enjoys watching movies, swimming, and eating.
Zhiqiao (Kate) Jiang is from Hangzhou, China, and graduated from The Derryfield School. She plans on majoring in Chemistry and Materials Science and Engineering. She is fascinated with solar energy and conducted summer research on perovskite solar cells. Currently, she works in the Murray group optimizing the synthesis of cadmium selenide nanoplatelets as well as investigating the self-assembly of superparticles. She believes this project will provide insights into new semiconducting materials. Outside of research, she works as a staff editor for the Penn literary translation magazine Doublespeak. In her free time, she enjoys running, playing the piano, and cheering for her favorite soccer team FC Barcelona.
Asaph Lee is from Belmont, Massachusetts. He will major in Physics and Materials Science and Engineering. Asaph's penchant for energy stems from his research at California State University Long Beach, where he synthesized and prepared certain transition metal-based compounds for crystal structure analysis. One of his potential research interests is in thermoelectric materials, as energy loss in the form of heat is quite common. In his free time, Asaph enjoys spending time with the Christian student group Asian Baptist Student Koinonia (ABSK) at Penn, as well as rooting for his favorite sports teams: the Los Angeles Lakers, New England Patriots, and Boston Red Sox.
Jonathan Mui is from Armonk, New York, and graduated from Byram Hills High School. He plans to major in Chemistry and Materials Science and Engineering. After conducting research at the University of Texas at Austin on nanostructured anodes for sodium ion batteries, he became fascinated with using nanomaterials to improve battery performance and hopes to continue his research through VIPER. In his spare time, Jonathan enjoys running and playing the piano.
Akaash Padmanabha is from Collierville, Tennessee, and graduated from Collierville High School. Before coming to Penn, Akaash conducted mentor-led research on the human brain using electroencephalography (EEG), with projects ranging from exploring object recognition to furthering seizure detection abilities. Now he plans to combine his passions for environmental sustainability and scientific research through VIPER, studying Chemistry and Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. In his free time, Akaash enjoys eating peanut butter, making paper cranes, and drinking water.
Cal Rothkrug is from Dallas, Texas, where he graduated from St. Mark’s School of Texas. He plans to study Systems Science and Engineering and Mathematics. During high school, he performed research at the University of Texas at Dallas synthesizing polymeric membranes for applications in commercial gas separation. In high school, he was involved in the orchestra, a science publication, and classics club. Outside of class, he enjoys playing the viola, chess, and can often be found playing basketball with his friends at Pottruck.
Michelle White is from Tallahassee, Florida and graduated from Lawton Chiles High School in 2018. She intends to major in Bioengineering and Biology through the VIPER program. She has always loved the life sciences and has performed past research on oil spills at the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory. She currently works with the Heller Lab in the Perelman School of Medicine to research the genetic mechanisms behind addictive behavior. Growing up in Florida led to her love of the ocean and marine biology, and she ultimately hopes to make great contributions in environmental health and sustainable energy with the help of VIPER. She also loves swimming and biking, and her favorite flavor of ice cream is coconut.