Applied math majors Elena Calderon ’26 and Jin Yue Trousil ’26 are returning to Whitworth this fall with a graduate school-like research experience on their resumes! The two spent the summer working on research projects and connecting with engineers and scientists at the Los Alamos Dynamics/Engineering Summer School. This is the second year in a row Whitworth students have earned spots in this highly competitive program.
The two share their key takeaways from the experience:
“I developed technical skills in engineering and applied math through my research project,” Trousil says. “I also advanced my project management, effective communication and teamworking skills, which are essential to being a successful scientist. In addition, meeting LANL scientists and exploring future research opportunities was exciting and inspiring! All these experiences are valuable as I consider applying to graduate school programs in my senior year at Whitworth.”
Calderon, who is also a physics major, reflects: “This summer was really challenging but also incredibly validating for me in two specific ways. After interacting regularly with engineers that attend technical schools, the value in attending a liberal arts school has become clearer to me. … Technical skills are important, but through this summer I’ve grown to appreciate the foundation of my Whitworth education. Another validating takeaway this summer has been the repeated confirmation that ‘math does not care’ (Dr. Kamesh Sankaran). Math does not care what field it’s applied to; it is foundationally the same, with a few tweaks here and there, when applied to any area of study. I’ve become more confident in my decision to study applied math and physics to develop a strong base understanding of the function of the universe.”
Well done, Jin Yue and Elena!
Worth a Look 