Kazi Fardinul Hoque ’24 — This summer, I had the privilege and pleasure to work with Dr. Nathan Tompkins and another intern Caleb Powell’22 in modeling pattern simulations through the Physics Department. Before I discuss the details of my internship, I would like to send my gratitude to my professor and mentor, Dr. Nathan Tompkins. Also, I want to thank Wabash College and the alumni donors who made my (and many others) internship dreams possible. The fact that I was able to work as a research intern during my freshman summer has been a truly blissful experience.
My internship involved creating a digital model of a physical phenomenon. Digital models of a physical phenomenon usually occur in tundra environments such as the Arctic. My internship work consisted of two main parts. The most significant work consisted of building the model simulation using Python modules MATLAB and NumPy. I examined past publications written on the physical phenomenon to gather accurate variables to optimize the model and give it a firmer scientific ground.
The internship has provided me with the basic knowledge required to research in the field of sciences. I learned how to document my work and review (and cite) relevant literature. Furthermore, since much of the work was related to python coding, I was also able to increase my knowledge and understanding of coding syntax and efficiency. Not only was I able to increase my coding efficiency, but I also learned how to code in new modules in Python like MATLAB and NumPy, which I never knew before.
My internship was a wonderful experience. I hope to continue working in the pattern simulations with Dr. Tompkins during the school year and hopefully achieve desired results that could lead to a publication.
