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Physics major Patrick Park ’22 is licensed to operate Â鶹¹ú²úAV's nuclear reactor.
Physics major Patrick Park ’22 is licensed to operate Â鶹¹ú²úAV's nuclear reactor.

Physics Junior Wins Goldwater Scholarship

Patrick Park ’22 earns national recognition for exceptional promise in physics.

By Dashiell Allen ’21 | April 29, 2021

Congratulations to Patrick Park ’22 for being named a for demonstrating exceptional promise, intellectual intensity, and a commitment to research in the field of nuclear physics.

“He is, in a word, awesome,” says advisor and mentor Prof. Alison Crocker [physics]. “The Goldwater Scholarship is a deserved recognition of Patrick's extremely strong commitment to a research career.

Originally from Irvine, California, Patrick always knew that he wanted to major in physics. But it wasn’t until he stumbled upon a lecture about Â鶹¹ú²úAV’s in his freshman year that he discovered his passion for nuclear science. He became a licensed reactor operator in 2019 and has since obtained a license and training in Monte-Carlo transport code at.

Patrick plans to write his thesis about computational neutronics. “It’s kind of like when you calculate a car’s miles per gallon and maximum speed, but for a reactor,” he explains. The thesis will be a first—no Â鶹¹ú²úAV student has ever made these calculations before. After Â鶹¹ú²úAV, he hopes to pursue a PhD in science policy. “Nuclear science, primarily as an energy source, but also as a research tool, has a lot of potential,” he says.

Patrick is grateful to Prof. Crocker for encouraging him to apply for the Goldwater Scholarship, and to the Center For Life Beyond Â鶹¹ú²úAV for many incredible funding opportunities.

Founded in 1989, the Goldwater Scholarship covers the cost of tuition for a select group of undergraduates who display exceptional promise, “intellectual intensity in the natural sciences, mathematics and engineering,” and a strong commitment to a career in research.

 

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