John H
- Research Program Mentor

PhD at Vanderbilt University

Expertise

Observational astrophysics, Experimental Cosmology, astronomy, robotics, data science

Bio

My academic passion is space and space sciences. It doesn't matter if I'm in the lab building next generation detectors or helping develop a new software pipeline to make data processing smoother. My favorite objects in space are black holes and a classification of active galaxies called blazars! Personal interests and hobbies of mine include gaming, drawing and building gundam models when I'm not busy with family.

Project ideas

Project ideas are meant to help inspire student thinking about their own project. Students are in the driver seat of their research and are free to use any or none of the ideas shared by their mentors.

Exploring Active Galactic Nuclei Light Curves

Active galactic nuclei are the powerhouses and central engines of large galaxies across the universe. These central engines are responsible for a multitude of phenomenon. One way to truly understand what is happening and why, is to better understand the variable nature of the light we see coming from these objects. We do this by studying light curves in different wavelengths. By taking these light curves and seeing how they change in brightness over different timescales, we can learn more about whats happening at the centers of these large galaxies and the black holes within them. All data used in this project is publicly available and accessible with the potential of a scientific research paper, presentation or letter as result.

Teaching experience

As an undergraduate, I worked as a volunteer for the Coca-Cola Space Science Center (CCSSC), where my responsibilities included running mobile planetarium shows at local elementary schools for grades K-5. I was also a volunteer for the mobile astronomy unit that was responsible for operating telescopes for astronomy nights or stargazing events. As a graduate student, I worked with more groups. I started my career as a volunteer mentor at the Pulsar Search Collaboratory (PSC), where I worked with local high school students from The School for Science and Math at Vanderbilt (SSMV). The outcome of this project was the development of a new method of analysis by my students that sped up the original analysis process. This project continued for one full school year before coming to an end. After ending the PSC project, I became a volunteer with SSMV, teaching and leading astronomy and robotics projects for high school sophomores. Additionally, I have volunteered with high school students in the Chicago area through the NAACP Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological, and Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO) program and the Space Explorers program through the University of Chicago.

Credentials

Work experience

University of Chicago (2022 - Current)

Postdoc

Education

Columbus State University

BS Bachelor of Science (2014)

Astrophysics and Planetary Geology

Fisk University

MA Master of Arts (2017)

Physics

Vanderbilt University

PhD Doctor of Philosophy (2022)

Astrophysics

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John H - Research Program Mentor