Tell me a little about yourself.
I am fourth year graduate student at the University of Florida in the Department of Astronomy, working on galaxy formation and evolution with simulations. I am originally from a very small town in Illinois (2000 people!) and I got my undergraduate degree in Physics from the University of Illinois. So I spent the first 22 years of my life in central Illinois... it was good to get away when I moved to Gainesville for graduate school. My biggest fear was always getting stuck at home, so college and grad school were neat because it guaranteed I would be exploring new places.
I really enjoy reading and I’ve been trying hard to get back into that lately. I like reading niche things like about royal families in medieval Europe. If I didn’t do physics and astronomy I think I would do something in history. History is like a big puzzle, almost like putting the pieces together in astronomy. I also like reading a lot of non-fiction, political science, and activism literature. I like fantasy but for some reason I can’t read science fiction.
How did you get interested in astronomy?
It is so cliche but I got interested as a kid by looking up at the night sky in wonder. That is one of the benefits of living a small town - you can actually see the stars! Leading up to college, I knew I really liked science but didn’t know my exact path forward. By process of elimination I found myself enjoying physics the most and knew it was the best fit for me.
My first research experience was in my sophomore year at a point in my knowledge curve where I wasn’t yet afraid of what I didn’t know. My research advisor asked what I wanted to do (i.e. work in the lab or work on data) but I wasn’t sure nor did I know what it really meant. He showed me an Allen wrench and asked me what it was. I know now, but at the time I had no idea, and replied that maybe I should go into data analysis.
What is your favorite part about DAWN?
DAWN is one of the more major collaborations that I’ve been able to join in my graduate career. As a first year graduate student, I had heard of the DAWN faculty and read papers. So to actually get to meet these people in person was priceless. I think everyone has their fangirl moment... Getting to know everyone and their work and witnessing the science develop real time - that is the cool part for me. It is so worthwhile to form partnerships here and there and to draw connections from informal meetings. These conversations wouldn’t happen if it weren’t for this program.
What motivated you to apply to an international REU?
My PhD advisor Desika Narayanan is very good at finding opportunities that are going to be a good fit for his students. He encouraged me to apply to this program and once I learned more about it I was very excited.
How has the pandemic impacted your life?
The pandemic happened right when I was transitioning from a brand new graduate student into getting my footing. I think it has disrupted a lot of what I think a typical grad student experience could and should be. On the flip side, I’ve been able to attend a lot of virtual conferences that I may not otherwise have been able to. I got to give a talk at Roman Space Telescope conference and a number of remote seminars at universities across the country. I have been able to expose my work to many more people than I otherwise would’ve been able to, and for that I am grateful.
If you could have any superpower what would it be?
The most obvious one is flying - that would be so much fun. I remember that it was always something I was dreaming about as a kid. Well, either that, or invisibility. The concept of being in a space and not being noticed is enticing. That sounds really creepy. But I guess I want to be a fly on the wall. I love people watching. Actually, you asked how the pandemic impacted my life? I can no longer people watch! It is tragic.
Tell me about your PhD project.
My PhD is a meandering project because my PhD advisor and I get together and brainstorm a lot of big ideas and get really excited but then realize they won’t all pan out. The big picture of my PhD is looking at the most massive galaxies in the universe at early times and understanding how they evolve in terms of their star formation, quenching, and dust. I’m into trying to understand how galaxies that exist 700 million years after the Big Bang have such extreme amounts of dust. We have so much to learn about how this dust forms, where, and when. I’m working on developing a holistic view of massive galaxy evolution, with a grab bag of different projects that use cosmological hydrodynamical simulations.
Where is the first place you want to visit when we finally get you to Copenhagen?
That is a good question! Definitely an art museum. I haven’t been a good noodle and researched where to go yet, maybe because I didn’t want to get my hopes up and have the trip cancelled, but I definitely need to find art museums. There is nothing more peaceful than being in an old art museum for hours by myself.
Anything else that you want to share?
I am very thankful for the other students in this program. This has been very fun given the circumstances. It seems like any time I meet younger students the bar keeps getting raised… these young kids are just killing it and that’s amazing! The future is bright. Seeing and working with undergraduates this summer has brought me new hope.
You can view Sidney’s professional webpage at sidneylower.com, contact her via email at s.lower@ufl.edu, or follow her on twitter @es_em_ell.