Can you tell me a little about yourself?
My name is Katie Chapman and I just completed my senior year at Colgate, earning a degree in Astronomy-Physics with an honors thesis on simulating the gravitational production of super heavy dark matter particles during inflation. I live in New Jersey now, but grew up in Connecticut. Outside of astronomy, I like running and ice skating and science & math youtube videos. I don’t make the youtube videos, I wish I did, but I find it inspiring to get ideas for how to communicate my own research. It also introduces new topics and ideas to expand my knowledge of abstract math concepts. Also, I’ve been getting into archery and chess while I’ve been here, learning from the other interns.
How did you get interested in astronomy?
My interest in astronomy started at the boarding high school I went to in Massachusetts. I took a basic intro astronomy class there. Seeing how enthusiastic I was, my teacher, Caroline Odden, suggested that I take an astronomy research class with her the following semester. She goes to the AAS every year and was able to pair each of us with a professional astronomer to conduct an individual research project. I had two projects, one was rediscovering exoplanets in Kepler data and the second was to search for strong gravitational lens candidates in dark energy surveys. I couldn’t imagine myself doing anything else once I had a taste of astronomy research.
What is your favorite part about Copenhagen? About DAWN?
I love the rich history with regards to physics in Copenhagen. I got to see Niels Bohr’s office and the room where Hafnium was discovered. Hafnia is the Latin name for Copenhagen, where the element was discovered. I actually just learned today that the direct english translation for Copenhagen is Chapman’s Haven, so, I belong here! Physics aside, I would definitely rate Copenhagen as “Lawful Good”: the transportation system always works on time and you follow the traffic rules religiously, the system works because people follow the rules. For me, DAWN is the ideal place to work and I love the community. I’ve always been in a smaller community, so it is cool to take part in the dynamic of an entire astronomy center and get to know people and be exposed to new topics. It is so easy to bounce ideas off people at a human level about anything, not just astronomy.
What motivated you to apply to an international REU?
I’m considering going to graduate school abroad and I was interested in the cosmology aspects of the center, so the program was a good fit for me. Also astronomy is a very international community, so being immersed in a new environment and seeing how they think will ultimately make me a better astronomer. I also really vibe with the European approach to work-live balance.
Can you tell me about your summer research project?
I am working with Dr. Daniel Ceverino, making use of the FirstLight simulation of high redshift galaxies. The motivation for my project is to make theoretical predictions for the formation of the first galaxies to inform future observations at cosmic dawn. In particular, I’m trying to elucidate the physical origin of starbursts by looking at merger rates and mass accretion histories.
What skills and knowledge would you like to acquire this summer?
I’ve already seen my python abilities improve exponentially, so I hope to continue to improve that even more. I’d also like to learn how to better communicate to the public about my research. I really enjoy listening to what kinds of questions people ask and what kind of connections they make with the talks that occur frequently here.
If you could have any superpower what would it be?
I’m really tempted to say teleportation or the ability to speak all languages. But, instead, I definitely would choose to have the power to immediately fully comprehend any paper I read. That would really help my career moving forward!