Clark T
- Research Program Mentor

PhD at University of Texas Austin (UT Austin)

Expertise

Machine Learning, Physics - (Mechanics), Applied Mathematics

Bio

A graduate from University of Texas-Austin now working as a postdoc at FU-Berlin in computational biophysics. (A fancy way of saying I model DNA/RNA on the computer) The bulk of my projects have focused on elucidating the fundamental mechanisms around biomolecule folding using Newtonian mechanics for simulation and extensively use python packages for visualization and analysis. I have published several (first and co)-authored peer-reviewed journals on the subject and I welcome any comments or questions you have about them. Before leaving from Texas to go to Germany I was an undergraduate at TnTech where I did research on biomass pyrolysis modeling primarily using Matlab. On the side I enjoy triathlons and reading just about anything I can get my hands on. More recently I have dusted off a viola and started trying to pluck a few strings as well as try my hand at writing some short stories. As a mentor I very much enjoy watching the light bulb click on and enjoy learning from the student. Discovering that missing puzzle piece or bug in the code feels extraordinary and I try to chase that feeling with every session and project.

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.

What influence does pH have on protein folding?

The shapes or conformations that proteins adopt depends strongly on their surrounding environment. As most proteins contain ~20 unique amino acids, the heterogeneity of their sequence is by no means indicative of their most stable structure. Students can expect to learn about molecular modeling and how even minor perturbations to the system can affect both the rate and stability of a particular fold. Possible projects include writing a journal/long-form blog post, creating a video conveying your idea, or presenting a poster at a regional science fair

Coding skills

python (scikit-learn, matplotlib, etc.), Matlab, C++

Teaching experience

Instructor at Trinity location for Duke TIP Mentor to Summer Welch high school student Mentor to Summer Moncreif undergraduate student Teaching Assistant Intro to Computing Statistical Mechanics Physical Chemistry

Credentials

Work experience

FU-Berlin (2021 - Current)

Postdoctoral Associate

Education

Tennessee Technological University

BS Bachelor of Science (2016)

Chemical Engineering

University of Texas Austin (UT Austin)

PhD Doctor of Philosophy