I grew up in Quito, Ecuador, where I lived until I joined the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for my Ph.D.
Before my doctorate studies in physics, I wanted to use my technical knowledge to solve specific interdisciplinary problems that could immediately impact people’s lives. I worked at the Beckman Institute at the University of Illinois to construct a new type of microscopy technique. The aim was to detect tumors in early stages of development (see our results in Cancer Research). This is a pressing problem because current screening techniques tend to detect tumors when it is too late for effective treatment.
Although the problem was interesting, I was always more drawn towards understanding nature at a fundamental level. The most outstanding question I had was in regards to the emergence of complexity: the reductionist approach in physics, by which we build ‘fundamental laws’ from our observation of nature, is a one-way street; those laws, it turns out, are not sufficient to describe nature! (See, for example, More is different). Puzzled by this question, I moved to physics, where I now study emergent phenomena in quantum mechanical extended systems.
I come from the mountains – Quito is at 2800 m above sea level. I often go back to them to find harmony and peace. See below a photo taken from Cayambe volcano, Ecuador, in 2017.