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Team:Cornell/testing/team/bios
From 2012.igem.org
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Team Members
- Undergraduates
- Graduate Advisors
- Faculty Advisors
Undergraduates
Manny Valdez
There was once a chemical engineered who feared no machine.His name was Manny Valdez, and he frequently dominated Pita Pit.
On iGEM, he is our tank.
When you need to bring in the big guns.
When you need to break out the machines.
When you need to CAD the **** outta some Septimus.
You call Manny Valdez.
He rumored to have DJ prowess on par with deadmau5.
Caleb Radens
Caleb gets the best miniprep yields because he is magic. Other examples of his hoodoo voodoo are as follows: Caleb can turn invisible, but chooses not to; he can breathe while underwater, but finds it distasteful; he can levitate birds, but laments that nobody seems to care. Also, Caleb has always found it curious that he can't remember not existing, and has thus concluded that he must be immortal. Lately, he's considered the possibility that the universe is merely a product of his mind, and that we'd all cease to exist if he were to die. After cogitating on whether such a view would commit him to solipsism, he's concluded that other minds can exist within the gestalt of a greater, emergent consciousness – viz., his own.Steven Chen
Some people think Steven is a pretty nice guy. But what they don’t know is Steven can be quite the liar. For example, ask him who the smarter twin is and he’ll say himself. Steven however, is definitely the nicer twin. Whether any of this is true is up to you.Steven is also strangely obsessed with all things Medieval Europe but that is about all that makes him interesting; he is actually a really boring person. His research interests are in the field of biochemistry, cell biology, biomedical engineering-- though why these interest him I couldn’t begin to understand. Steven really likes eating bread. He likes his bread plain, just like his personality.
Spencer Chen
Some people think Spencer is a pretty nice guy. But what they don’t know is Spencer can be quite the liar. For example, ask him who the smarter twin is and he’ll say himself. Spencer however, is definitely the meaner twin. Whether any of this is true is up to you.Spencer likes to read Ancient Greek and Roman literature, which has limited to no real-world application to his life. He is however, passionate about immunology and genetics research. He is a freak of nature with many bodily disorders. For example, his arms and legs are different lengths. He idolizes Thomas Keller and secretly wants to drop out and make haute cuisine for a living.
Dylan Webster
Dylan visited our world when our universe's membrane collided with an adjacent one. Because he experiences the entire span of his lifetime simultaneously, he does not believe in free will. He won't tell us whether we'll win, though.
Rafael Lizarralde
Averages 200 + ATM in SC, makes chimeric polymerases in his spare time, and proficiently speaks four languages - Rafael is a modern day renaissance man. His brain surpasses Amazon's servers with the storage capacity approximately equal to a googlebyte or three of data. After majoring in Biological Engineering, Rafael plans to go to graduate school. In graduate school, it is rumored that Rafael plans to study meat science and the art of turf grass management. Rafael's career aspirations are to win a couple of noble prizes and designation as Cosmo's "Man Candy of the Year."Danielle Huang
Danielle, "the overachiever" always aims for higher goals. Her schedule is packed just like that of a Hollywood star, except that she doesn't act, but she truly enjoys keeping herself busy and productive. What an exemplary student. Over the summer break, she worked very hard to contribute to Cornell iGEM until the day before she left Cornell for a co-op at Johnson & Johnson. We miss you Danielle!
Chie Shu
Simply put, Chie can do everything. You can find her in our wet lab, dry lab and mathematical modeling teams. With a wild background from a Japanese all-girl high school and taiko drumming (Yamatai), she would also sit down at a piano to play classical music and cook delicious Asian food. Her love for cats has reached the level where she can now talk to them (seriously). We suspect her reason for joining iGEM is to steal Claire’s cute cats.Mark Simpson
As the God of Making Electrocompetent Stocks, it is appropriate that Mark has taken the mighty lightning bolt as his emblem. Like Almighty Zeus, one day Mark too may smite enemies with his bolts of vengeance and seduce nyiads, mortals, and nymphs alike. But, for better or for worse, as of yet Mark draws most of his power not from his promiscuity, but from his cell-washing prowess – we can only hope that he will soon take up the baton of social chair (passed to him against his will, probably because he wasn’t in the room to protest) and buy the team a round of pepperoni pizza.
Tina Su
Currently a sophomore Chemistry major, Tina is interested in just about everything. Her passion for learning has allowed her to be one of two people who span both the wetlab and drylab. Her dependability in interjecting with at least one question has allowed us to lovingly nickname her the 'Random Question Generator.' Tina brings lots of hard work and dedication to the team, the same of which can be seen in her hobbies, such as running three miles a day. The team really needs her ability to be thorough while managing her >20 credits and researching for CUGEM, and not just because nobody else is small enough to be the subject in analogies involving the size of our Pelican bioreactor encasement. Tina is incredibly caring and friendly, but if you still need something to talk about, simply mention yogurt. Or bread. Or Feynman.Claire Paduano
One day, Claire met the Energizer Bunny and decided that she wanted to be better than him. So she sat up, jumped out of her crib and got to work. Ever since that fateful day, Claire has conquered every obstacle in her path. Whether it’s imaging mouse brains, dancing on Sitara, solving Quantum Electrodynamics problems or saving Cornell iGEM from certain doom, Claire can do it all.
Maneesh Gupta
A true Renaissance man, and a true ladies man. Any task you give Maneesh, from PCR to programming, will be done flawlessly. Just don’t try to get him to leave his house in the process. He’s the master of all things barbecue and Boolean, tasty and triangulated, mathematical and manly. But vegetarians beware, he's Maneesh Gupta, and he’s so delicious.Jim Mathew
An elocutionist so suave you'd think he speaks in songs of the Sirens. But don't let his baby face and sunny smile fool you. Featured four times on the front cover of Nature, Forbes, and Maxim's Hot 100, Jim seamlessly integrates his wizardry in chemical engineering and applied economics into a leader's conviction that's not to be taken lightly.Jim has been especially prolific the past couple of years. He coined the acronym YOLO after wrestling black bears on one of his favorite morning hikes in the great outdoors. As an esteemed member of the Cornell Consulting Group, Jim personally advised Carly Rae Jepsen to append "maybe" to her signature call phrase, single-handedly launching her path to fame. He founded the student organization "Nebraskans at Cornell," for which he juggles all the responsibilities as president, treasurer, social chair, and...sole member.
Sorry, ladies, but this bro's heart already belongs to a special someone.
Dan Levine
While most of us are water-based, Dan is not not water-based. He enjoys long walks on the tight-rope, bumpy rides on the pommel horse and protein-heavy meals. If you are what you eat, then Dan is a bowl of non-fat Chobani yogurt (the serving spoon being a vanilla-flavored Power Bar). However, a cranial examination reveals Dan is wired to circuit-boards and graphics cards. At a glance, his computer models could be mistaken for supermodels. Needless to say, Dan is popular among ladies.Lydia Wang
Lydia is a unique specimen in the Cornell iGEM team. Not only is she one of the rare electrical engineers that have been ensnared by iGEM, but she also has shown an incredible skillset in the electronics lab. These include the ability to communicate to electronics and defy the laws of physics. When she is not busy trying to move batteries in Phillips 228, she is often seen showing off her magnificent rowing skills for the dragon boat team.
Kelvin Luu
There are only 10 types of people on Cornell iGEM: Kelvin Luu, and those who wish they could count like Kelvin Luu. Basically, the man’s a G – a Graphics G. Beyond website design and Android coding, Kelvin enjoys orienting objects and warping System.time with his compsci genius. Other talents involve staying up past 4 AM and making burnt hash browns.Robert Zhang
His memory, photographic. His vision, legendary. On a mission to Weill Hall, he once sniped a rogue Shewanella at 400 yards. He logged its last words, recounting all meals, behaviors, and decisions performed before the kill.In lab he can be found crafting tools for our next challenge, working on the latest iteration of Septimus Prime. He is rumored to live a double life as a Deus Ex Aug. With a sweet pair of shades.
Shweta Patro
Not much can be said about Shweta – her radiance can only be captured through the joyous harmonies of pop music. After all, she lights up our world like nobody else. The way she flips her gets us overwhelmed. Our princess of vlogging, our proponent of public education, and Swati’s beloved twin, she comes with only one disclaimer: after midnight, nothing that goes in or out of her mouth counts. If only we were her boyfriend, we’d never let her go.Swati Sureka
In the panhandle of Florida, born and raisedIn the lab is where she now spends most of her days
First stop, up. Then second stop down.
Such precision and skill, she deserves her crown.
Once, a couple of bubbles that were up to no good,
Started making trouble in the fume hood.
Swati used her powers to flick em out the tip, yeah
Everyone agrees: Man, she's a trip!
Upstairs, for the purpose of quantification
Swati never really does take a vacation
Nanodrop. Load up, wait for the click.
Concentration: 10 million. Wow, she's slick!
