Sunday, June 7, 2020
By:
After a previous week of pandemic stressors, political turmoil, and rising social movements, Monday was a breath of fresh air. Zoom calls have become the center of the pandemic and its hardships but in earnest, the orientation zoom meeting with all interns and SPS staff was a welcome sight.
Tuesday morning brought a new motivation, as I met my mentors at NIST; Joseph Kopanski and Bryan Barnes. Alongside Trey Cole, a fellow NIST intern, we were given the opportunity to choose which mentor to work with. Between Trey and I, we decided that I would be working with Bryan Barnes given my interest in both Computer Science and Physics. For the remainder of the week, I spent most of the time reading literature to familiarize myself with the project and equip myself with the knowledge to effectively conduct my work. Furthermore, I met Bryan daily through Skype which provided me with a sense of belonging at NIST by not only discussing the details of our work but also engaging in everyday conversation which I would have expected to have at NIST.
Wednesday was an exciting morning! A package containing spectacular posters of Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, and Marie Curie, a t-shirt, mug, and best of all a plush cow arrived! It truly made my day. This plush cow has now joint two cows already present in my room. Hopefully, I will have a herd of toy cows one day! In the attached images you can see two of my cows, the third one decided to wander off! The excitement proceeded to the weekly intern activity planned that evening where all interns joined a zoom call and played JackBox Games. While I wasonly able to attend the event for an hour it was great to meet all the interns in an informal setting allowing us to familiarize ourselves with each other better.
As the week comes to an end it’s hard not to ponder upon the experiences this pandemic has taken away from us; living together with other interns, working at NIST facility, living in DC and so much more. On the other hand, this pandemic has reinforced my core motivation as a STEM major. This motivation and passion, as with any individual, has the power to work towards the betterment of humanity.
I am looking forward to this summer as I wish to create new bonds, enhance my skills, have new experiences, and make the most out of every opportunity this internship provides me.
Abdul Qadeer Rehan