Directory

I grew up in Orange County, California, where I also completed my undergraduate education at the University of California, Irvine with degrees in Human Biology and Anthropology with a minor in the History and Philosophy of Science. Over the past few years, I have had the opportunity to conduct research in neuroscience, philosophy, and public health. Through my interdisciplinary education, research, and work with local nonprofits in Southern California, I became familiar with the intricate interplay between human health and social structures. I learned how political disenfranchisement parallels the inability to access healthcare, and how oftentimes, our postal codes exert more influence over our health outcomes than our genetic codes. During my time as an MPhil student in Health, Medicine, and Society, I will research how medical uncertainty—especially in the case of chronic illnesses such as cancer—complicates the achievement of health equity and how decision-making changes when we reach the scientific limits of medicine. I am humbled to be a part of this community, and as an aspiring physician-anthropologist, I will use my experience as a Gates-Cambridge scholar to work to make healthcare accessible to all.

Previous Education

University of California Irvine Human Biology; Anthropology 2021

After growing up in Southeast Asia, I became a proud citizen of Southeastern Kentucky at the beginning of my high school years. I studied Chemical Engineering at the University of Kentucky and as an undergraduate took part in several engineering research projects around the United States. Balancing my scientific work, I enjoyed studying the humanities as a Gaines Fellow. At Cambridge I am pursuing a PhD in Chemical Engineering with the Biosciences Engineering group under Professor Nigel Slater. With my work at Cambridge as a foundation, I intend to help bridge the gap between academic investigation and useful technology.

Out of the curiosity of cell signalling, I chose biological sciences as my major in Xiamen University and got the admission to the Beutler Institute, where the training of genetics and immunology presented me the promising future of precision medicine as an alternative treatment of infectious diseases. Specific genetic variations among the population can disrupt host immunity and confer vulnerability to certain infectious diseases. Studying genes that participate in immune responses, therefore, enables us to develop novel therapies targeting related pathways and apply them to patients carrying those mutations. In my PhD study, I will focus my research on tuberculosis, a continuous threatening disease for the human being, especially in developing areas. By identifying genes that affect the host susceptibility to mycobacterial infection and revealing their functions in pathogenesis, discoveries will be likely to promote our understanding in the fundamental mechanisms of our immune system, and shed light on host genotype-specific therapies to the tuberculosis infection, which enable patients to receive personalized treatment with lowest cost but highest efficiency. It is a great honour of being one of Gates scholars and joining the community with the shared commitment for benefiting others. I hope my endeavour will contribute to diminishing the inequality of medical treatments around the world.

Previous Education

Xiamen University Biological Sciences 2018

My research at the Cambridge Centre for Environment, Energy and Natural Resource Governance focuses on climate change mitigation, transportation, and food sustainability.

I graduated from Columbia University with a BA in Neuroscience and Behavior and am currently a medical student at Washington University School of Medicine. My research interests lie at the intersection of medicine, technology and society, with a focus on imaging technology and global health. My MPhil dissertation research focused on the development of the CRISPR-Cas9 system, a genome-editing technology, its translational applications, and potential for human germline modification. I am interested in the critical analysis of and formulation of frameworks for inclusive and interdisciplinary discourse that bridges the medical and research communities, regulatory bodies, and the wider public to inform equitable and responsible uses of advancing medical technologies.

Previous Education

Columbia University
Washington University

Previous Education

Hobart and William Smith Colleges B.S. Chemistry with concentration in biochemistry 2006

Links

https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxmacaluso

My research focuses on ethnicity and border conflicts in Colonial Kenya. I hope to use this research not only to further our understanding of history in Africa, but also to gain insights into the current conflicts facing the continent. Special thanks to the Gates, Trinity Hall, and my family for their continued support of my research.

I am the Program Administrator and McDonnell Fellow at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, MA, where I run the McDonnell Initiative. Our goal, in the McDonnell Initiative, is to bring historians and philosophers of science into collaboration with life scientists in order to transform the research of both fields.

My research in history and philosophy of science aims to uncover historically entrenched assumptions in current science and explore the repercussions of these assumptions. My goal is to use history and philosophy of science to transform and accelerate scientific research. My focus is on germline research and human genome editing.

I am studying English Literature as an undergraduate affiliated student. My main areas of interest are Literary Criticism, Modernism, and Commonwealth Literature. My final dissertation will revolve around the issues connected with language of propaganda and the mechanisms behind linguistic manipulation as portrayed in the work of George Orwell. Studying at Cambridge is an invaluable experience, both from the academic, intellectual and social perspective. The place, with its beauty and the resonating aura of history, constitutes a perfect environment for the development of knowledge.

I graduated from Universidad Mayor de San Andrés in La Paz, Bolivia in 2003 and received my professional licence in 2008. Before coming to Cambridge I worked with the German Archaeological Institute (DAI-KAAK) and the University of California, Berkeley in archaeological expeditions that took me from the Titicaca Basin to the Amazon Forest. Last year I completed an MPhil in Archaeological Research at the University of Cambridge. In that time I set the groundwork for my PhD research in the Llanos de Moxos, eastern Bolivia, on the development of early complex societies in the Amazon Basin. I hope that my work will help reveal the unknown history of the present indigenous communities and have a positive impact in developing policies for future heritage and forest management. Parallel to my research I work at FFMV, a small non-profit organisation, that aims to support young Bolivian scholars and promote free access to research resources in the fields of Music, Arts and Social Sciences.

As the son of a U.S. Naval Submarine Officer, I have had the opportunity to grow up in numerous locations throughout the United States, and most recently in Silverdale, Washington. As an avid cyclist, runner, and outdoor-enthusiast, I have developed a deep commitment to environmental issues and am distraught at the liberality that carbon-based fuels are consumed. I graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Systems Engineering from the United States Naval Academy. At Cambridge I will be pursuing an MPhil in Energy Technologies, hoping to curtail the effects of anthropogenic climate change and to tackle the myriad of energy challenges that the world faces through development, testing and evaluation of practical engineering solutions. As a Naval Officer, I am especially interested in discovering which low-carbon renewable energy sources are the most practical, efficient, and economical to decrease the petroleum-dependency of the Navy and to meet the energy demands of the world at large.

After completing my Bachelors in Physics in India, I read Part II and III Natural Sciences at the Cavendish Lab with a focus on Theoretical Physics while a Gates Scholar. I then joined the Physics PhD program at Stony Brook University, New York, and began research in cosmology. I subsequently did postdoctoral research at Princeton University and the Perimeter Institute before joining the University of Pennsylvania as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy. As an astrophysicist and cosmologist, my research focuses on understanding the initial conditions, evolution and composition of the universe as a whole.

Links

https://live-sas-physics.pantheon.sas.upenn.edu/people/mathew-madhavacheril
https://msyriac.github.io
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathew-madhavacheril

My undergraduate career has led me to a unique journey committed to unlocking the secrets of the human brain while constantly contemplating the meaning of “ethics” in the fields of research and medicine. I have had the opportunity to study neuroscience from a molecular, physiological, and clinical perspective. In the future, I hope to use this knowledge to explore neurological disorders in children. However, I recognize that medicine is an incredibly interdisciplinary field and while I am fortunate enough to have had a science-intensive undergraduate experience, I will use my time at Cambridge to further my understanding. Through the MPhil in Health, Medicine, and Society, I will apply my previous experiences as a researcher while exploring new fields in the philosophy and history of health and medicine. I also hope to gain an international perspective of clinical and laboratory practices. My dissertation will focus on the efficacy and ethics of existing mammalian research models. I hope to target the philosophy of cognitive psychology through the multispecies interactions between humans and animals, particularly scientists and their test subjects. I am beyond grateful to the Gates Cambridge Trust for giving me the opportunity to be a part of a motivated, engaged, and gifted group of scholars and future leaders.

Previous Education

California State University, LA

I work with indigenous communities in Arctic Finland, looking at the intersection of material culture and politics, environment and reconciliation, and embodied practice, trauma, and memory. I study the collection of natural materials, the making and reconstruction of cultural objects, and the politics of who may use, wear, and make these things. Ultimately, I seek to understand how the the material world may be used to effect social change.

This year in Cambridge, I am doing a one year taught masters in Theoretical Physics. My primary interests are in String Theory and all aspects and applications of Quantum Field Theory: whether it is high-energy physics, condensed matter physics or cosmology. My undergraduate research can be described as an attempt to understand phases of matter when the interactions between particles are very very strong, like in High-Temperature Superconductors. I am also really interested in International Development and Education in India at all levels, and look forward to networking with people working in the field.

Having lived in both Pakistan and the United States, I have sought ways to assist the world through developmental ventures. While completing my BS in Biology at Stanford University, I realized the potential of entrepreneurship to establish sustainable change and advance the human condition. In turn I co-founded a non-profit to raise awareness and funds for microfinance in the developing world; and at the same time drafted several business plans for potential biotech companies. In studying towards an MPhil in Bioscience Enterprise at Cambridge, I hoped to facilitate my non-profit and technology experience into potentially viable projects of global impact.