SISSA
A MISTI/IROP student, Justin researched at the International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA) in the mathematical modeling research group Mathlab under the supervision of Professor Gianluigi Rozza—a former post-doc at MIT. Working closely with Rozza, Justin built examples and collected pre-worked problems into a book which will be used as a Mathlab teaching aid. Sissa, says Justin, “draws researchers from all around the world, thus I found myself working in an environment much like that at MIT, and I found it very easy to settle in.”
MechE
While adapting was easy, the work experience itself may affect Justin’s future at MIT. “I had previously been very set on pursuing physics and pure maths; now, after working in a mechanical/mathematical engineering lab, I am greatly reconsidering my major. Seeing the endless possible applications of mechanical engineering and the modeling it allows is very attractive to me, and I will be taking a MechE class this fall.”
Immersion
Justin rarely spoke English in Italy and loved it! “The best thing I got out of the trip was my complete immersion in Europe. The only time I really spoke English was at work; at all other times I was forced to speak Italian which was perhaps the greatest experience.” By the end of the summer, Justin was conversing with native speakers about the Italian economy and politics.
