Aatish Bhatia

Work

• Science Writer & Science Education Consultant. Fall 2019 - Present
• Associate Director, Engineering Education, Council on Science and Technology, Princeton University. Fall 2013 - Summer 2019

Education

• Ph. D., Department of Physics and Astronomy. Rutgers University. 2013
• B.A. with Honors, Physics Major and Mathematics Minor. Swarthmore College. 2007

Publications

• p5.js 1.0 Contributors Zine
  p5js.org · 2020
  p5.js Open Source Contributors
• Tuning Playfully: Composed and Adaptive Tunings in bitKlavier
  Computer Music Journal · 2020
  D. Trueman, A. Bhatia, M. Mulshine, T. Trevisan
• Modernizing and Disseminating the 'Structural Art' Teaching of David Billington
  Proceedings of the 7th Structural Engineers World Congress · 2019
  M. Garlock, A. Bhatia, E. Laffey
• Paper Piano: Making Circuits with Everyday Things
  Proceedings of the 17th ACM Conference on Interaction Design and Children, Trondheim, Norway · 2018
  S. De La Cruz, A. Bhatia
• Neuron-modeled Audio Synthesis: Nonlinear Sound and Control
  Proceedings of the New Interfaces for Musical Expression Conference · 2018
  J. Snyder, A. Bhatia, M. Munshine
• Effective Approaches for Teaching STEM-literacy for All Majors: The Example of Resonance
  124th ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition · 2017
  M. Garlock, A. Bhatia, E. Laffey
• Engaging Students With The Creative Art of Civil Engineering
  123rd ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition · 2016
  A. Bhatia, M. Garlock, E. Laffey
• Enhancing Student Cognition And Affect Through The Creative Art Of Structural And Civil Engineering
  123rd ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition · 2016
  E. Laffey, A. Bhatia, M. Garlock
• Active Learning Pedagogies Promoting The Art Of Structural And Civil Engineering
  122nd ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition · 2015
  A. Bhatia, P. Chen, K. Perez, M. Garlock, E. Laffey
• Introducing Modern Teaching Into A Classic Course On Structural Art
  Proceedings of the IABSE Conference - Structural Engineering Providing Solutions to Global Challenges · 2015
  M. Garlock, A, Bhatia, N. E. Khorasani
• Bird To Human Transmission Biases And Vaccine Escape Mutants In H5N1 Infections
  PLOS One · 2014
  K. Wagh, A. Bhatia, B. D. Greenbaum, G. Bhanot
• Yeast Growth Plasticity Is Regulated By Environment Specific Multi-QTL Interactions
  G3: Genes, Genomes, Genetics · 2014
  A. Bhatia, A. Yadav, J. Gagneur, C. Zhu, L. M. Steinmetz, G. Bhanot, H. Sinha
• Detecting Signatures Of Natural Selection In Genetic Data
  Ph.D. dissertation, Rutgers University · 2013
  A. Bhatia
• Sporulation Genes Associated With Sporulation Efficiency In Natural Isolates Of Yeast
  PLOS One · 2013
  P. Tomar, A. Bhatia, S. Ramdas, L. Diao, G. Bhanot, H. Sinha
• Lactase Persistence And Lipid Pathway Selection In The Maasai
  PLOS One · 2012
  K. Wagh, A. Bhatia, G. Alexe, A. Reddy, V. Ravikumar, M. Seiler, M. Boemo, M. Yao, L. Cronk, A. Naqvi, S. Ganesan, A. J. Levine, G. Bhanot
• Neurite Sprouting And Synapse Deterioration Are Features Of The Aging C. Elegans Nervous System
  Journal of Neuroscience · 2012
  M. Toth, I. Melentijevic, L. Shah, A. Bhatia, K. Lu, A. Talwar, H. Naji, C. Ibanez-Ventoso, P. Ghose, A. Jevince,  L. Herndon, G. Bhanot, C. Rongo, D. Hall, M. Driscoll
• What It Feels Like For A Sperm
  Chapter in The Best Science Writing Online 2012, Scientific American Books · 2012
  Editors: B. Zivkovic, J. Ouellette.

Talks

• Music Education at Spotify, NYC
  Tinkering at the Boundary of Physics and Music
  New York, NY · Oct 13 2018
• Annual Crump Physics Lecture, St. Andrews School, Delaware
  Wandering into Puzzles: Being Curious About Everyday Things
  Middletown, DE · Feb 9 2018
• New York Public Library (Mid-Manhattan Branch)
  Why? What makes us curious? Mario Livio in conversation with Aatish Bhatia
  New York · Jan 17 2018
• Parsons, The New School
  Mundane Beauty | Observational Practices and the Everyday
  New York, NY · Dec 15 2016
• Rutgers University Physics Colloquium
  The Physics of Everyday Life
  New Brunswick, NJ · Dec 14 2016
• American Society of Engineering Education
  Engaging Students With The Creative Art of Civil Engineering
  New Orleans, LA · Jun 29 2016
• Princeton University
  Making Ideas Stick: Tips on being a more effective communicator
  Princeton, NJ · Jun 29 2015
• Princeton Pi Day & NJ Chapter American Association of Physics Teachers
  Finding the Hidden Pi: a Physics Demonstration Show
  Princeton, NJ · Mar 14 2015
• Invited Lecture: American Physical Society
  Can we build a more efficient airplane? Using applied questions to teach physics
  Savannah, GA · Apr 5 2014
• Science Online
  How Science Education Can Improve Science Communication.
  Raleigh, NC · Feb 28 2014

Panels

• Parsons, The New School
  Talking about Seeing Symposium
  New York, NY · Dec 15 2016
• Princeton University
  The Art of Science Communication
  Princeton, NJ · Mar 6 2016
• Princeton University
  Beyond the Podium: Educators on Social Media
  Princeton, NJ · Dec 11 2015
• American Museum of Natural History
  STEM Career Panelist, NYC Science Research Mentoring Consortium
  New York, NY · Nov 11 2015
• American Museum of Natural History
  STEM Career Panelist, NYC Science Research Mentoring Consortium
  New York, NY · Nov 11 2014
• Harvard University
  Active Learning: From Evaluation to Practice.
  Boston, MA · Nov 3 2014

Workshops

• STUDIO for Creative Inquiry
  p5.js Contributor's Conference
  Pittsburgh, PA · Aug 13 2019
• Kent Place School Ethics Institute
  Creative Coding & Ethics
  Princeton, NJ · Jul 22 2019
• W.E.B. Du Bois Scholars Institute
  Group Theory And Hair Braiding (led by Bernat Guillen Pegueroles & Sharon De La Cruz)
  Princeton, NJ · Apr 28 2019
• Princeton Public Library
  Processing Day Workshop: Art + Code: Make a Greeting Card with p5.js
  Princeton, NJ · Feb 7 2019
• Maker Faire
  Using Your Senses Makes Sense
  New York, NY · Sep 23 2018
• Princeton University Materials Academy
  Two week workshop on Wearable Technology for Princeton and Trenton High School Students
  Princeton, NJ · Jul 11 2018
• Interaction Design and Children (IDC) Conference
  Paper Piano: Making Circuits with Everyday Things
  Trondheim, Norway · Jun 20 2018
• St. Andrews School, Delaware
  Paper Piano: Making Circuits With Everyday Things
  Middletown, DE · Feb 8 2018
• Maker Faire
  Making Circuits with Everyday Things
  New York, NY · Sep 23 2017
• TED-Ed Weekend
  Making circuits with everyday things
  New York, NY · Jun 17 2017
• Princeton University
  Creative Art of Structural and Civil Engineering
  Princeton, NJ · Jun 15 2017
• W.E.B. Du Bois Scholars Institute
  Making circuits with everyday things
  Princeton, NJ · May 5 2017
• UMass-Amherst
  Creative Art of Structural and Civil Engineering
  Amherst, MA · Jun 13 2016
• Princeton University
  Creative Art of Structural and Civil Engineering
  Princeton, NJ · Jun 4 2015
• American Physical Society April Meeting
  Undergraduate Physics Teaching
  Savannah, GA · Apr 5 2014

Awards & Honors

• How To Dance With a Fractal Tree (Video), Modern Art Oxford
  Artistic video collaboration with Upasana Roy displayed in Modern Art Oxford's Creative Space from Feb 8 - March 15 as part of the Tools for Life Exhibit. 2020
• Artist in Residence, Frank-Ratchye STUDIO for Creative Inquiry
  Invited to participate in the p5.js Contributor's Conference as part of a week long residency supported by the National Endowment for the Arts. 2019
• Invited Participant, ThinkerCon
  Invited to participate in ThinkeCon, a YouTube sponsored conference for online educational content creators. 2018
• Juror, Tribeca Film Festival, TFI Sloan Filmmaker Fund
  Invited by the Sloan Foundation to be a science juror for the Tribeca Film Institute Sloan Filmmaker Fund. 2017
• Juror, Gregory T. Pope '80 Prize for Science Writing, Princeton University
  Invited to participate as a juror for a science writing prize in honor of Gregory Pope. 2015 - 2019
• Second Place, 3 Quarks Daily Science Prize
  Science writing prize judged by evolutionary biologist & author Nick Lane. 2015
• Senior Personnel, Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE) NSF grant
  Senior Personnel on an NSF funded grant on the Creative Art of Structural and Civil Engineering. 2013 - 2019
• ScienceSeeker award
  Science Writing award. 2013
• First Place, 3 Quarks Daily Science Prize
  Science writing prize judged by physicist & author Sean Carroll. 2012
• Education Fellow, New York Academy of Science
  Taught afterschool astronomy and space science in a middle school in Newark, NJ. 2011
• India-US Physics Student Visitation grant
  Awarded jointly by the American Physical Society and the Indo-US Science and Technology Forum. 2010
• Richard J. Plano Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award
  Rutgers University physics teaching award. 2010
• Kenneth William Defontes Jr. '72 Scholarship
  Swarthmore College. 2006
• Marion L. Dannenberg Scholarship
  Swarthmore College. 2006
• Howard Hughes Medical Institute Summer Research Fellowship
  Swarthmore College. 2006
• Howard Hughes Medical Institute Summer Research Fellowship
  Swarthmore College. 2005

Teaching

• STC/EGR/MUS 209: Transformations in Engineering and the Arts, Instructor, Princeton University, Spring 2019
• STC/MUS 204: Musical Instruments, Sound, Perception, and Creativity, Instructor, Princeton University, Fall 2018
• STC/EGR/MUS 209: Transformations in Engineering and the Arts, Instructor, Princeton University, Spring 2018
• FRS 125: Musical Instruments, Sound, Perception, and Creativity, Lab Facilitator, Princeton University, Fall 2017
• STC/EGR/MUS 209: Transformations in Engineering and the Arts, Instructor, Princeton University, Spring 2017
• STC/EGR/MUS 209: Transformations in Engineering and the Arts, Course Facilitator, Princeton University, Spring 2016
• Physics 106: Physics for the Humanities and Social Sciences, Instructor, Rutgers University, Spring 2013
• Physics 193: Physics for the Sciences I, Teaching Assistant, Rutgers University, Fall 2012
• Shake, Rattle & Roll: Building Robots with a Sense of Balance, Instructor, The New Jersey Governor's School of Engineering and Technology, Summer 2012
• Afterschool Universe Workshop, Instructor, Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School in Newark, NJ, Fall 2011
• Physics 204: General Physics II, Teaching Assistant, Rutgers University, Summer 2010
• Physics 272: Honors Physics II, Teaching Assistant, Rutgers University, Spring 2010
• Physics 271: Honors Physics I, Teaching Assistant, Rutgers University, Fall 2009
• Physics 203: General Physics I, Teaching Assistant, Rutgers University, Summer 2009
• Physics 124: Analytical Physics I-B, Teaching Assistant, Rutgers University, Spring 2009
• Physics 193: Physics for the Sciences I, Teaching Assistant, Rutgers University, Fall 2008
• Physics 203: General Physics I, Teaching Assistant, Rutgers University, Summer 2008
• Physics 115: Extended Analytical Physics I, Teaching Assistant, Rutgers University, Fall 2007
• Physics Clinic, Clinician, Swarthmore College, Fall 2005 and Spring 2006

Course Consultations

• Musical Instruments, Sound, Perception, and Creativity (MUS 204) · Fall 2019
  Assisted Dan Trueman on developing and revising lab assignments
• Computer Graphics (COS 426) · Spring 2019
  Contributed code on cloth simulations that was incorporated into the final assignment for the course
• Structures and the Urban Environment (CEE 262) · 2013 - 2019
  Worked with Maria Garlock as Senior Personnel on an NSF funded Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE) grant entitled the 'Creative Art of Structural Engineering'
• Introductory Physics (PHY 101) · Fall 2015
  Worked with Katerina Vinsjic on revamping the syllabus, precepts, and assignments to adopt an active-learning framework based on the Investigative Science Learning Environment
• Mathematics in Engineering (MAE 305) · Fall 2015
  Worked with Howard Stone on incorporating active learning to teach Differential Equations
• Freshman Scholars Institute: Foundations of Engineering (EGR 150) · Summer 2015
  Worked with Claire Gmachl and Andrew Houck on creating the physics, math, and engineering curriculum of this summer course, mentored undergraduate and graduate student learning assistants
• Writing About Science (ENV 249) · Fall 2014, Fall 2016
  Worked with Michael Lemonick on incorporating discussions & activities about science, statistical reasoning, and critically assessesing scientific claims
• Emerging Micro and Nano Engineering Technologies (FRS 129) · Fall 2013
  Worked with Janine Nunes on incorporating blogging assignments and investigative mini-labs, where students used Arduinos and lab equipment to investigate fluid dynamics
• Engineering and the Modern World (CEE 102) · Fall 2013
  Worked with Michael Littman on a large-enrollment introductory engineering course for liberal arts students
• Aircraft Flight Dynamics (MAE 331) · Fall 2013
  Worked with Robert Stengel on an advanced course for engineering students

Research

I'm interested in helping people use math & science for creative expression, personal empowerment, and building community. My research interests include:

• Explorables: Experimenting with the medium of the web for interactive science communication & creating interactive science explainers
• Citizen Science: Building community oriented projects that encourage public engagement with science and nature
• Play With Math: Developing tools, projects, and curriculum for a more joyful, playful, and personally relatable math education
• Tools for Thought: Creating personally relatable, empowering, and fun tools to help us think about abstract ideas in concrete ways

Collaborations

My teaching & research collaborators at Princeton University included the following people:

• Dan Trueman, Department of Music, Princeton University
  Collaborated on developing and teaching STC204, on research on exploring mathematical aspects of tuning systems, and creating pedagogical software tools for musical exploration, such as Spring Tuning, a web-based spring simulation for solving music tuning constraints, and Trueman's BitKlavier.
• Maria Garlock, Civil & Environmental Engineering, Princeton University
  Collaborated on teaching STC209, developing active learning exercises for CEE262, and on a multi-year NSF funded Improving Undergraduate STEM Education (IUSE) research project on the Creative Art of Structural Engineering.
• Sigrid Adrienssens, Civil & Environmental Engineering, Princeton University
  Collaborated on teaching STC209, and on research on web-based cloth simulations including Drape and String Machine.
• Jeff Snyder, Department of Music, Princeton University
  Collaborated on teaching STC209, on reseach on neuron based models for sound synthesis, and provided input for physics & code based sound installations including Sunspots and Constellations.
• Sharon De La Cruz, Assistant Director, StudioLab Iniatives, Princeton University
  Collaborated on teaching STC209, conducting workshops on the Paper Piano & building circuits with everyday things, on StudioLab initiatives, and on creating experiential & culturally relevant ways for learners to engage with STEM.

I am a contributor to the open-source codebase and website for the creative coding library p5.js, where I contributed examples, improved the documentation, and helped identify and diagnose bugs.

Writing

I am an award-winning science writer. In addition to my former blog Empirical Zeal which explored the math & science of everyday things, I have written for publications & educational outlets including WIRED, Nautilus, io9, TED-Ed, Minute Physics, collaborated on a blog called Noticing with Robert Krulwich, and been a guest and science consultant on Radiolab. In 2012, I was published in print in The Best Online Science Writing 2012 (Scientific American Books), and awarded first prize in the 3 Quarks Daily Online Science Writing Prize. My writing and videos have collectively been accessed millions of times. You can find a complete list of my writing on my website.

Media Mentions

Media Appearances & Interviews