2012 BruinLife: Academics

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There have been young people attending college and defying limits for a long time, yet no others could say they had already written a best selling book and were in the process of writing another, while taking a full class load and graduating with a mathematics degree– all before turning 15. Moshe Kai Cavalin could say all of that and more, if he wanted; however, he didn’t like to be called a genius or defined by his prodigy status. “I don’t like being judged by my IQ because I don’t feel like I’m just a number. When you judge people in just one aspect, you don’t consider the other aspects that make a person,� said Cavalin, who had been called a genius since he began doing math problems at age three. His mother and father realized his special interest in mathematics and tried to enroll him in classes at East Los Angeles College when he was seven, but he was turned away for being too young. After waiting a long year, Cavalin enrolled in college at the age of eight, which made him one of the youngest students in the United States to take college classes. In just two years, he graduated with an A.A. in astrophysics from ELAC with a perfect 4.0 GPA and Summa Cum Laude honors. It was during his time at ELAC that Cavalin was inspired to write his first book, entitled “We Can Do,� after his history professor Richard Avila wrote in a recommendation letter that Moshe might one day be a better writer than he was. Moshe took this as encouragement and began writing what became a bestselling book in Tawain, Malaysia, Singapore, and other countries. “I had received a lot of e-mails asking how I accomplished everything. [Other

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theory most. That could change, though, when choosing a focus for his graduate school studies. On track to finish classes at UCLA in Fall 2012 or Winter 2013, Cavalin will have finished his degree right around his 15th birthday. His future plans included graduate school, which he hoped to finish by the time he turned 19. Like any 14-yearold, though, he did not yet have plans for after finishing his Ph.D. Cavalin said, “I have many doors open, many possibilities. I still do sort of want to be an astrophysicist, because it’s sort of an art--the universe is a beautiful creation. I love math and astrophysics, but I’m still young, so I have options.” Outside of his rigorous academic interests, Cavalin excelled at Jiu-Jitsu, a form of martial arts that his father introduced him to when he was six years old. He won several national championships, three years in a row. But during his time at UCLA, he had less time for martial arts training, and instead played soccer at a local park with high school children in the area. Additionally, Cavalin loved scuba diving off the coast of Santa Cruz and played piano for fun. “People smile or laugh when I say this, but I have a bucket list of things that I want to start doing in the summer,” said the 14-year-old. “I want to get my driver’s license, do more scuba diving, and fun things like that.” He attributed his astronomical successes as “95% to my parents, 4.98% to my professors, and maybe—maybe—.02% goes to me. I just took advantage of the advice and opportunities from the

kids] didn’t have guidance from their parents the way I did, so I wanted to encourage kids to work hard,” explained Cavalin. In the book he wrote of his educational philosophy, ideas about parentchild relationships, and the hard work that he claimed was all it took to get him where he was. He originally wrote the book in traditional Chinese, translated it to simplified Chinese with his mother’s help, then to English. As his first book was so well received

world-wide, he set out to write his second book. The novel was about bullying—not necessarily the archetypal physical violence some kids endured on the playground, but the emotional bullying, academic bullying, and age discrimination that Cavalin encountered in his efforts to attend college at such a young age. “I was a hardworking student, and I had a 4.0 GPA; however, they didn’t give me any scholarships at ELAC. I guess you could say I was politically bullied,” said Cavalin. UCLA Professor of Mathematics Chandrashekhar Khare, who taught Cavalin’s number theory class, sparked his interest in math. After exploring so many regions of mathematics, Cavalin had narrowed his special interest to algebra, but even within the subject of algebra, there was algebraic number theory, algebraic topography, algebraic K theory, and algebraic geometry to choose among. Toward the end of working on his B.S., he thought he enjoyed K theory and number

“I was a hardworking student, and I had a 4.0 GPA; however, they didn’t give me any scholarships at ELAC. I guess you could say I was politically bullied.” professors teaching me and my family supporting me.” Cavalin’s most important philosophy was that “with a strong mind, resilient heart and hard work, anyone can accomplish what I have.” OPPPOSITE | Moshe Kai Cavalin poses as he tells BruinLife his plans to graduate at the age of 14. PHOTO | JOSE FREDI HERNANDEZ. TOP | Moshe Kai Cavalin practices Jiu-Jitsu outside of the Students Activities Center. Cavalin has won several national championships in Jiu-Jitsu. PHOTO | KATHERINE SUN. BOTTOM | Cavalin studies for his upper division mathematics class. UCLA Professor of Mathematics Chandrashekhar Khare, who taught Cavalin’s number theory class, sparked his interest in math. PHOTO | KATHERINE SUN.

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>OLU Ä YZ[ `LHY \UKLJSHYLK O\THUP[PLZ Z[\KLU[ 5LYYPZ 5HZZPYP Ä YZ[ KLJPKLK [V THRL H -HJLIVVR NYV\W MVY PUJVTPUN MYLZOTLU SP]PUN PU +`RZ[YH HUK +L 5L]L OL ^HZU»[ LU]PZPVUPUN MHTL VY UV[VYPL[` VY L]LU THRPUN H UHTL MVY OPTZLSM @L[ ^OLU OL MH[LM\SS` JSPJRLK VU ¸*YLH[L ¹ [OH[ ^HZ L_HJ[S` ^OH[ OHWWLULK Nassiri’s UCLA experience began with an acceptance letter in midMarch of 2011, and mere weeks later, the immensely eager Bruin began to crave social interaction with his future classmates, prompting him to join a ‘Class of 2015’ Facebook group. Realizing the networking and friend-making potential of such a group, Nassiri took matters into his own hands once housing offers came out, creating and administrating a group christened, ‘Dykstra-De Neve Class of 2015.’ Despite his take-charge attitude, at that point Nassiri said, “I didn’t even realize that [the DykstraDe Neve complex] was, like, six different buildings…but I added the group, and within two or three weeks, it had hundreds of people on it.” As the number of

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group members staggeringly grew—as many as twenty an hour early on—Nassiri became more and more of a notable presence in the group, often posting answers to common freshman questions that ran the gamut from how to work with financial aid to dorm room layouts. “People would always ask me questions, and I had to make sure things like my financial aid were perfect, so I kind of knew a lot of the answers. I’d post a lot. I’d help people out. They’d probably get annoyed with me after a while,” Nassiri shared with a self-deprecating laugh. In many cases, needing to know the answers to the prompted questions himself inspired Nassiri to spend time meticulously finding out the truth, much to the avail of many incoming freshmen. Somewhere along the line, group members started recognizing Nassiri around campus. In one such instance, Nassiri explained, “Within three minutes of stepping out of the car [during move-in weekend] people were like, ‘Are you the Facebook Guy?’” Although constant reference to his nickname became somewhat annoying in the early months of fall quarter, Nassiri learned to accept the benefits and costs of heading such a large social networking hub on campus. Despite the somewhat unusual circumstances and annoyances of “Facebook fame,” Nassiri explained that being able to meet people with common interests along the way and creating something with an impact much bigger than his own was a fully rewarding experience. Moreover, the Facebook group led him to meet some of his closer friends on campus, many of whom were still significant parts of his social life on campus well into spring quarter. In fact, according to Nassiri, coming to campus with a cursory knowledge of people he could immediately get together with and call “friend” made the transition much smoother for him. However, as with anything, not all of his experiences with group members were good ones. In one bizarre experience, Nassiri recalled, “One girl was super excited to go here but got really depressed, and she’d message me and say, ‘Nerris, help me out’ and would call me at really weird hours. Some people I met would be so outgoing online and then not want to talk at all in person.” As the creator of such a large Facebook group and with a name like “The Facebook Guy,” one might have expected that Nassiri would be a huge advocate for social media, and to some extent he was, finding social media invaluable for meeting new people and networking, especially at a place as large as UCLA. However, even Nassiri promoted the importance of branching out as a student offline. “I feel like there are a lot of cases where we need to be like, okay, let’s get off Facebook now and socialize for once,” he advised. At the end of the day, though, it became strikingly clear that for Nassiri, a blend of social media networking and personal, face-

to-face connections were the perfect formula for the aspiring filmmaker to tackle some of his loftier artistic projects and goals. As he recalled, “One day over summer break, I realized, hey, I’ve got a camera, and people at UCLA seem really cool—much cooler than the people at my high school.” After establishing a small but enthusiastic crew of about 10 people, Nassiri and company began the process of brainstorming and weeding through the many proposed ideas. At the start of fall quarter, the ragtag team of filmlovers began making shorts, but it was not until early winter quarter that the real magic began. Nassiri and his group of friends wrote, directed, composed, and filmed a music video, and later worked on a short film for the UCLA Video Production Crew. According to Nassiri, the music video in particular was close to his heart: “It was a song I wrote over winter quarter for this girl I really had a huge crush on. It’s called ‘Your Smile,’and it’s really just about a guy who loves this girl’s smile a lot. I thought, I’ve got a camera. Let’s make a video and get to work.” Although unsure of exactly what he wanted to do in life, Nassiri hoped to find a way into film, building on his experience in over twenty musicals in addition to his

love for acting, directing, music and dance. He attributed much of his love for artistic pursuits to inspiration from his grandfather who “was always a really musical person and actually made some music videos in the early 2000s.” Although his grandfather’s popularity in music may not have been as close to that of this famous musician, Nassiri looked up to him as a “John Lennon of today.” With admiration, Nassiri shared, “He’s paying for my tuition, and I really admire him. With what I do in music, I really want to be like him.” For Nassiri, UCLA became a venue to grow as a friend, musician, director, and thinker, both through the creation of his immensely popular Facebook group and the ability to stand out as a highly unique individual among a sea of thousands of student faces: “UCLA has been my dream since I could walk and talk—I’m so thankful I’m here.” OPPPOSITE | Nerris Nassiri poses as he tells BruinLife his journey to being known as the Facebook Guy. PHOTO | JOSE FREDI HERNANDEZ. BOTTOM | Nerris Nassiri takes a break during one of his photoshoots around campus. In addition to video, Nassiri enjoys doing photography on his spare time. PHOTO | QINQIN YANG.

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9LSH[PVUZOPWZ +LWLUKPUN VU ^OV `V\ ^LYL HUK `V\Y L_WLYPLUJLZ `V\ LHJO WYVIHIS` [OV\NO[ VM ZVTL[OPUN KPMMLYLU[ \WVU OLHYPUN [OH[ ^VYK 9LSH[PVUZOPWZ -VY ZVTL `V\ TH` OH]L [OV\NO[ HIV\[ `V\Y ZPNUPÄ JHU[ V[OLY @V\ TH` OH]L [OV\NO[ HIV\[ `V\Y MHTPS` @V\ TH` OH]L [OV\NO[ HIV\[ `V\Y MYPLUKZ @V\ TH` OH]L [OV\NO[ HIV\[ [OL T\S[P[\KL VM ZTHSS PUZPNUPÄ JHU[ PU[LYHJ[PVUZ [OH[ `V\ OH]L ^P[O WLVWSL VU H KH` [V KH` IHZPZ For Dr. Benjamin Karney, it was about the intimate relationships– marriages. He began his research upon coming to UCLA as a graduate student, working in Thomas Bradbury’s marriage lab. “I do research on newlywed couples. I follow them over time and the question is ‘what predicts whether couples stay together in a fulfilling relationship versus couples that become distressed, unhappy, or divorced.’” Even during some time spent at the University of Florida, Karney and Bradbury corresponded and continued to research together, recently co-authoring a book based on their findings. They still collaborated at UCLA. Born and raised in Los Angeles just mere miles from Westwood, Dr. Karney used to frequent the UCLA campus and Powell library during his high school years. Coming into college, Karney had originally intended to become a journalist;

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“My style is to cheat. And I cheat by teaching the most interesting courses on campus.”

however, he soon became acquainted with a professor who left a lasting impression. “I asked him if he liked being a professor and he said to me, ‘I absolutely love it. It’s the best job in the world. I get to study whatever I want. I get to do whatever I want to do!’ And I said, ‘well, that sounds good to me.’” Now married with two children, Karney and his family reside just north of

Los Angeles. As a part of the psychology department, he had been a UCLA faculty member since 2007 and admitted that being a professor is “fantastically good job which I would totally recommend to anybody. My favorite thing is that I can do whatever I want.” Likewise, students knew him by his enthusiastic and entertaining teaching style and persona. Asked about his style, Karney responds, “My style is to cheat. And I cheat by teaching the most interesting courses on campus. It’s easy to get enthusiastic if you’re teaching the most interesting courses: social psychology and intimate relationships. [And] I don’t try to teach my students a particular piece of

knowledge, but rather a perspective on the world. I try to teach them to appreciate how complicated the world is and to try to look with different perspectives at the same phenomenon.” But aside from his intellectual preferences, Karney possessed other passions as well. “I have quite a eclectic taste in music,” he states. Among his favorites were Ingrid Michelson, Ben Folds, and Punjabi dance music. As an undergraduate at Harvard University, he participated in a student a cappella group known as the Veritones. “[Singing in that group] was my best experience in college,” Karney said, “I loved singing. I spent all my free time with the group. We traveled, we sang, and when we finish shows we would sing some more. It was an absolute blast.” Even at UCLA, Karney was able to entertain his passion, as he was asked to be the faculty sponsor to the UCLA acapella group, the Scattertones. “I’m very moved by that. [The Scattertones] are a co-ed a cappella group and my group in college was a co-ed a cappella group, so I feel like I’ve come a full circle.” Aside from his devotion to music, Karney also admits that he was strongly passionate for “both the consumption and preparation of ” food. He was an avid cook and enjoyed eating out; he especially liked Napa Valley Grill and Noodle Planet in Westwood. “I have a theory that all academics are into food,” Karney said, adding “Being a scholar is all about delayed gratification: you do your research, and you don’t know how it’s going to turn out. In a life of delayed gratification, you gravitate towards food which is immediate gratification.” Ultimately, though, Karney was passionate for teaching. “Being at this university is terrific,” Karney affirmed. “You’re surrounded by faculty who are passionate about what they do and are interested in researching something interesting and are interested in teaching and sharing that knowledge. And you’re surrounded by students who are passionate about being students, who are interested in learning, who are eager to make their way in the world. That’s so exciting. The idea that I get to spend my life being around that kind of growth and intellectual exploration? I’m very blessed.” OPPPOSITE | Professor Karney poses as he tells BruinLife his experience as a proffesor at UCLA. PHOTO | JOSE FREDI HERNANDEZ. TOP | Professor Benjamin Karney defines same sex relationships during his spring quarter intimate relationships course. Professor Karney enjoys teaching the intimate relationship course as it directly relates to his individual course of research. PHOTO | KEVIN TSENG. BOTTOM | Karney further explains methodological issues to students who were having difficulties understanding the topic. Karney has been teaching at UCLA since 2007. PHOTO | KEVIN TSENG.

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Although she had always wanted to be a teacher, she wanted to stand out more. That’s why in second grade she told the class she wanted to be a nun when she grew up--all the other girls said they wanted to be teachers, and young Kara Cooney wanted above all to be unique. She continued her individual path ever since, eventually becoming Associate Professor of Egyptian Art and Architecture at UCLA. Kara Cooney--whose published name is Kathlyn Cooney--grew up in an Irish Italian Catholic family in a town that was predominantly evangelical Christian. She had three sisters and one younger brother, with whom she found herself participating in many dangerous stunts like jumping from the roof onto large bean bag chairs. Cooney took charge of the family when she was eight years old and her mother fell ill, so she learned to mix pseudo-adult supervision with daredevil times with siblings. At the high school she attended, students placed a great emphasis on wealth, where many of the students drove Porsches and the faculty drove old, used cars, which created an environment of social status dependent on material objects. She began her undergraduate education at University of Notre Dame, and upon finding that it did not entirely suit her needs, she looked elsewhere for an education that would better fit her. Although Cooney’s family did not agree with her decision to move from Indiana to Texas, she followed her own goals and transferred to University of Texas at Austin. While there, she took a few classes on Egyptian art and architecture, wrote a senior honors thesis on an ancient Egyptian art form, and fell in love with Egyptology. Professor Kara Cooney had always been fascinated by death. “I knew that I loved dead people, and dead civilizations and everything dead by the time I was a sophomore [in college],� Cooney said. Luckily for her, she found a passion in Egyptology, which is the study of ancient

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“I knew that I loved dead people, and dead civilizations and everything dead by the time I was a sophomore [in college].� Egyptian history, art, and archaeology—a field in which not many found themselves. Upon realizing in early years of college that she was inclined to study art and archaeology, she discovered the ancient Egyptian culture and fell in love with everything it had to explore. Choosing to write her senior honors thesis while studying as a humanities student, she delved into the topic of predynastic palettes. These were slates as large as four feet tall or small enough to fit into the palm of one’s hand, and were originally used to grind and apply the green-colored mineral malachite on, some of which are ceremonial and decorated. She wanted to discover who the enemies depicted in the decorated palettes were, which was a question no one had precisely answered before. This taught Cooney the lesson that “you can’t ask any question that you want of the world. You can only ask questions that the evidence can help you answer.� Although dealing with ancient Egyptian civilization had limitations as to how much evidence existed, Cooney embraced the gray areas that signaled mystery. “What evidence is ever established? Nothing is ever definitive! Nothing is ever black and white! Human beings are complicated and finding the motivation for their behaviors is complicated,� said Cooney excitedly. At home, she builds with Legos, has tea parties, and plays with Buzz Lightyear with her two-year-old son and her husband, who is a screenwriter and producer. She met her

husband when they were in the sixth grade, where she noticed his individuality time and time again. Being an associate professor and a mother of a toddler did not leave much time for leisure, though. Although Cooney’s busy schedule demanded a lot from her, she said she wanted to be a mother once she got “the dream job,� and she finally did. It was a long process getting a position at UCLA, which she had desired ever since taking a one-year teaching position upon finishing her Ph.D. at Johns Hopkins University. After that stint, she did postdoctoral research at Stanford for three years, and then worked at The Getty Villa, running their research program. A position eventually opened up at UCLA in 2009, and Cooney finally secured a position as Associate Professor of Egyptian Art and Architecture. Cooney taught both graduate and undergraduate students at UCLA, which she said had extremely different energies. The undergraduate students had taken a few classes and like the subject, but the graduate students, like herself, were “those crazed and demented souls who must devote their lives to it.� She began teaching at Howard University, a historically black college, during her last year of graduate school. As she stood at the front of the class on the first day, a student sitting in the very back row with his arms crossed over his chest asked, “Were the ancient Egyptians black?� By answering back, “What do you mean by black?� Cooney established a relationship with her class that she was not trying to tell them what to think. “I was amazed at how much emotion the ownership of ancient cultures can bring up. If I come in as a white professor and I’m talking about these people, there is often a very emotional response to my perceived ownership of these people.

These cultures are not dead at all; race and power are completely intertwined with this ancient culture.� Cooney loved to encourage students to learn how to think on their own, but more importantly, to be good human beings. She said, “Be kind. In the end, that’s the most important thing. If we live in a complex civilization which is inherently based on exploitation, think about who you’re exploiting. We can’t escape the system, so given that reality, what can you do about it? How can you make things a little better?� On her long list of achievements was a TV miniseries that Cooney produced with her husband called “Out of Egypt� which aired on the Discovery Channel in 2009. A comparative archeology series, it explored basic human questions and how they could be answered in 10 different civilizations around the world compared to Egypt. This process was like getting a second Ph.D., she said, because she was able to meet with specialists in all the regions they traveled to and learned so much from her questions. Why Egypt, exactly? Cooney answered, “Why do you like ketchup? I don’t know. It’s an emotional answer, and I have no good intellectualizing answer for it. It’s just something I love and something I am driven to learn more about. I think it would be rather hackneyed to say it’s a calling, but it’s the best way to describe it.� With her passionate desire to explore ancient culture, Professor Cooney inspired her students to think about, engage with, and discover the ancient world that held so many fascinating mysteries.

OPPPOSITE | Professor Kara Cooney poses as she recounts her journey to being the Egyptologist she is today. PHOTO | JOSE FREDI HERNANDEZ. TOP | Kara Cooney and John Hazard in Luxor during one of their shoots of her show Out of Egypt. Kara’s Out of Egypt first aired on the Discovery Channel back in August 2009. PHOTO COURTESY OF KARA COONEY. BOTTOM | Cooney examines bones found in the deserts of Egypt. On top of her travels around the world for her work and teaching Cooney enjoys her family time with her husband and two year old son. PHOTO COURTESY OF KARA COONEY.

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>P[O H OPNOS` WYVMLZZPVUHS RUV^SLKNLHISL JV\U[LUHUJL" H ZOVJR VM NYL` OHPY YLĂ… LJ[PUN ^PZKVT VM TVYL [OHU HTH[L\Y WYVMLZZVYZOPW" HUK HU PTWVZPUN PM UV[ PU[PTPKH[PUN 7O + MYVT [OL 4HZZHJO\ZL[[Z 0UZ[P[\[L VM ;LJOUVSVN` Z[\KLU[Z TH` UV[ ULJLZZHYPS` L_WLJ[ JP]PS HUK LU]PYVUTLU[HS LUNPULLYPUN WYVMLZZVY 2LP[O :[VSaLUIHJO [V IL `V\UN H[ OLHY[ VY JVTWHZZPVUH[L [V^HYK [OL MVSSPLZ VM `V\[O /V^L]LY ZWLUKPUN TVYL [OHU H ML^ TPU\[LZ OHZ LUSPNO[LULK Z[\KLU[Z WLLYZ HUK MHJ\S[` TLTILYZ [V [OL MHJ[ [OH[ 7YVMLZZVY :[VSaLUIHJOÂťZ WHZZPVU L_[LUKLK UV[ Q\Z[ PU[V OPZ Ă„ LSK VM Z[\K` I\[ PU[V [OL SP]LZ OL [V\JOLK Starting out life in Washington D.C., Stolzenbach uprooted to become a Bostonite at MIT for undergraduate work. Finding a home and comfort for himself at the university, he continued on to complete his bachelor’s and master’s degrees, and eventually his Ph.D. in 1971. While his eventual decision was to research water quality issues, Stolzenbach originally began his schooling in physics. “When you’re in high school, if you liked science like I did,

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that’s just what you did. But what I learned when I got there was that I was going to be a very bad physicist,� the professor shared with a chuckle, “But I heard from friends who were working on very interesting problems, things that seemed very intriguing, so I eventually joined up with the civil engineering department, which at the time was one of the most progressive departments.� Describing a time when the first computers were being put to use for scientific usage, Stolzenbach recalled that even at a technological institute like MIT,

is combining your perspective with theirs.� His involvement with the Institute of the Environment grew, and he eventually held the title of Associate Director of the department, although his teaching work extended far beyond the basic underlay of environmental science. He explained, smiling, “If you can believe it, I teach a course on probability and statistics! I originally thought I would teach high school physics, but I ended up here. Anyway, I’ve always really liked teaching.� When asked what his favorite teaching experience was, Stolzenbach reflected on the field trips

interesting professional life. Having divorced and remarried, the professor had two generations of children, with his children from his first marriage in their forties and married and his children from his current marriage in their teen years. Because of this, Stolzenbach explained, his grandchildren from his first marriage are in the same age bracket as his children from his current marriage. This seemingly unique modern family has turned out to be a perfect tie between the two halves of his family. Stolzenbach explained, “My kids and my grandkids are, of course, all friends, literally.

he’s taken, bringing students to a local landfill. “The landfill itself looks like this huge mountain, and it’s well landscaped to look nice, so we drive up to the top of the ‘mountain’ of trash, and nobody is prepared for the size of the thing—it’s roughly as large as Los Angeles Airport. Every year you can hear the students gasp. One of my students told me she lived right next door to the thing and never knew what was up there,� he said. Even with many responsibilities on campus, the professor elucidated that his research was working with water quality issues in the Santa Monica Bay. With regard to storm water issues associated with runoff, pollutants were of the upmost priority. Moreover, in tandem with his research, Stolzenbach enjoyed becoming what he called “an amateur oceanographer,� getting to explore the depths of the ocean in a submarine and photographing hydrothermal vents that most have never seen, let alone know exist. “I tell people it was like taking out all of the shelves in a refrigerator and crawling in and closing the door with the refrigerator on,� he said. If possible, Professor Stolzenbach’s home life managed to rival his immensely

They’re all Facebook friends, so they know what’s going on with each other way before I do!� Though he described himself as having “boring� hobbies like reading, the professor became notorious for leading a hilarious and informative rap at the conclusion of the environment cluster’s winter quarter, notably while wearing a backwards cap and poetically explaining the significance of ecological issues. Though he exerted a professional air, Stolzenbach’s passion for teaching resonated in his compassion toward students. Consistently offering up advice to help Bruins along their path, Stolzenbach shared, “My advice, always, is think about what you’re really doing when you’re a student. You’re sitting around taking classes. Don’t worry too far ahead. Look at the courses you really want to take and are passionate about, and find a major that reflects that.�

“My kids and my grandkids are, of course, all friends, literally. They’re all Facebook friends, so they know what’s going on with each other way before I do!â€? only two fields—electrical engineering and his own path—even offered classes working with computers. Although civil engineering was even complicated and intricate when he began working with it, the public-worksbased field had since grown to include what he explained as “buildings, foundations for buildings.â€? He continued, “What was then just called sanitary engineering is now plans for water quantity and water quality issues and now includes transportation, air quality, and the like, but not products. We don’t make toasters!â€? Stolzenbach made his way back to MIT after graduating to work as a faculty member, conducting research in fluid motion and water quality for eighteen long years. He then packed his bags and moved to California, first working at CalTech before teaching his first course at UCLA in 1991. Stolzenbach recalled, “I was asked to become a regular faculty member in ’96, which is about when the Institute of the Environment started up, so I became a big part of that.â€? His current position as head of the World Environment general education cluster course for freshmen was soon established: “UCLA had been talking about doing something like the clusters for a while then, and the Institute of the Environment got involved, and those two things got connected. The next thing I knew, I walked into a meeting and they told me I had three months to get the course ready— they asked me to be the coordinator and I have been ever since. It’s sort of my baby.â€? According to Stolzenbach, the combined perspectives of professors in many fields are what truly made the cluster course great. He stated, “You get to talk to people that have a different perspective‌part of the challenge

OPPPOSITE | Professor Keith Stolzenbach poses as he shares his experience with teaching the freshmen GE cluster. PHOTO | JOSE FREDI HERNANDEZ. TOP | Professor Keith Stolzenbach goes over the weekly readings with his freshmen class. Stolzenbach enjoys teaching students about how to engage with the environment and what can be done to be green. PHOTO | ALICE LIU.

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0[ ^HZ UV JVPUJPKLUJL [OH[ [^V WYVMLZZVYZ \UKLY [OL SHZ[ UHTL APTTLY ^VYRLK H[ [OL <*3( +LWHY[TLU[ VM ,JVSVN` HUK ,]VS\[PVUHY` )PVSVN` ;OPZ JHU IL [YHJLK [V SPML ZJPLUJLZ WYVMLZZVYZ 9PJOHYK HUK *OLY`S (UUÂťZ THYYPHNL 0U 9PJOHYK HUK *OLY`S (UU Ă„ YZ[ TL[ PU >HZOPUN[VU + * H[ [OL 6MĂ„ JL VM 5H]HS >VYRZOVW (M[LY [OL TLL[PUN [OL` TL[ ZWVYHKPJHSS` HUK [OLU KLJPKLK [V Z[HY[ KH[PUN H[ H JVUMLYLUJL ;OL` ^LK H[ [OL [\YU VM [OL JLU[\Y` 7YPVY [V [OH[ *OLY`S (UU APTTLY H[[LUKLK :HU 1VZL :[H[L <UP]LYZP[` HUK 4HZZHJO\ZL[[Z 0UZ[P[\[L VM ;LJOUVSVN` MVY OLY NYHK\H[L KLNYLL 9PJOHYK APTTLY YLJLP]LK OPZ IV[O OPZ IHJOLSVYÂťZ KLNYLL HUK 7O + H[ <* :HU[H )HYIHYH Richard, who had been on the UCLA faculty since the beginning of 1995, reminisced about the path to their eventual marriage. He said, “Because at the time she had a faculty position at Massachusetts and I had one at UCLA, going on dates and all the rest was kind of tough.â€? The long distance dating scene became much easier when a faculty position opened up at UCLA. Cheryl Ann honored the vacant position and joked that “[she] was [solely] hired to retain Richard.â€? Her husband clarified, “Officially, it was not a retention issue. But I had talked with the Dean, and the Dean was looking to be able to hire an amazing woman, physicist coupling biology, and Cheryl Ann has a curriculum vita that goes through the roof. So the Dean was salivating [to hire her] and as soon as he found out that we were going to get married, he initiated a oneperson search to hire Cheryl Ann.â€?

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“I was sweating bricks because evaluations were at the end of the course and I thought, my god, when they see her elegant PowerPoints, my little overheads and whatnot will not be appreciated by the students.� In addition to now teaching at the same university, the Zimmers also shared labs, co-wrote papers, and unsurprisingly lived and commuted to work together. With the tremendous amount of time spent together, Richard commented, “Working very closely with a spouse could either be the worst of all of worlds or the best of all worlds. And I think it has been the best of all worlds. Cheryl Ann echoed, “I would have never thought that I would like that, but it works great. I never get sick of Richard, and we always have good ideas. Well, sometimes I get mad.� Richard jokingly interrupted, “Well, this is going in the yearbook for sure, thanks a lot.� “But it’s usually because he is right, and it just really works really well,� she continued. Both spouses concurred that the secret to their calm coexistence was their deep respect for each other. Richard expanded, “I think very honestly, Cheryl Ann knows what she knows and knows what I know. I know what I know and I know what she knows. She brings skills that I don’t have. Each is true to our own personalities. We are interested in many of the same overall problems, but we bring different skill sets to the problem and so it’s a natural collaboration. And we really complement. There has never been an argument in terms of us fighting over turf.� Cheryl Ann laughingly added, “We’re basically one person.� When it came to teaching styles,

however, Richard and Cheryl Ann were not one person. Rather, their teaching styles were decades, if not worlds apart. In terms of technology used in class, Richard Zimmer considered himself a dinosaur because he doodled and wrote notes on overhead projectors as lecture notes. Cheryl Ann, on the other hand, used PowerPoint Presentations. Regardless of their polar teaching methods, the Zimmers have taught classes together. Richard Zimmer explained, “We team teach a class, and our styles are diametrically opposed. Somehow it works and somehow students did not seem to care. I was sweating bricks because evaluations were at the end of the course and I thought, my god, when they see her elegant PowerPoints, my little overheads and whatnot will not be appreciated by the students.� Hidden behind the Zimmers’ varying teaching styles is their shared and sincere goal for teaching the value and necessity for the integration of sciences. Richard said, “A goal of each of the classes we teach is to take the calculus and the physics and chemistry that students learned as freshmen and sophomores. Rather than throwing that out the door or saying that none of that matters and now we are going to learn biology, what we say is that it does matter. Now [students] are going to take these tools that they have been trained with, but really have not used

and are going to apply them to solve major problems in ecology and evolutionary biology.� Outside of the university, they both swam and hiked. Richard also surfed, while Cheryl Ann knitted and ran. The duo also loved to travel and was fortunate to have research projects in Australia, Belize, and New Zealand. Explaining the purpose of the ongoing project in Australia, Cheryl Ann said, “The question [we hope to answer] is how crabs can feed on sediments that are almost without carbon or food. But [the location] is amazing with these white sand beaches, and there’s nobody out there but us doing our work.� No matter where the world takes the Zimmers, be it Australia, Belize or New Zealand, Washington D.C., will always mark the start of their journey together. OPPPOSITE | Professor Cheryl Ann and Richard Zimmer PHOTO | DAVID HSIUNG. TOP LEFT | Cheryl Zimmer explains her PowerPoint slide to her upper division biology class. Unlike her husband, Cheryl Zimmer prefers using technology for her mode of teaching. PHOTO |PEIWEN WU. TOP RIGHT | Robert Zimmer writes down his main point on the overhead projector. Robert Zimmer enjoys using old school overhead projectors to engage his students in paying attention to the main points. PHOTO | PEIWEN WU. ABOVE LEFT | Cheryl Zimmer making molds of crab feeding troughs for her research in Australia in 2011. Cheryl Zimmer enjoys sharing her research with her students and making it relevant with the course material. PHOTO COURTESY OF CHERYL ANN ZIMMER. ABOVE RIGHT | Robert Zimmer collecting pellets and crabs in Australia 2011. Robert Zimmer and Cheryl Zimmer would occasionally collaborate on research together. PHOTO COURTESY OF CHERYL ANN ZIMMER.

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469, ;/(5 4,,;: ;/, ,@, 4(;/,4(;0*: 796-,::69 +(=0+ >,0:)(9; :/(9,: /0: 7(::065: 05 ;,(*/05. (5+ ),@65+ >P[O HU PUJYLKPISL YHUNL VM OVIIPLZ YHUNPUN MYVT ISHJRZTP[OPUN [V H[OSL[PJZ [V [YH]LSPUN 7YVMLZZVY +H]PK >LPZIHY[ MV\UK [OL YPNO[ ^H` [V IHSHUJL LHJO VM OPZ WHZZPVUZ [OYV\NOV\[ OPZ SPML >LPZIHY[ ZOHYLK ¸0 KPK H SV[ VM ^VVK^VYRPUN HUK TL[HS^VYRPUN 4` IYV[OLY HUK 0 \ZLK [V KV H SV[ VM MVYNPUN" ^L HJ[\HSS` I\PS[ V\YZLS]LZ H MVYNL PU V\Y WHYLU[ÂťZ IHJR`HYK >L ^V\SK OHTTLY [OPUNZ V\[ @V\ RUV^ ISHJRZTP[OPUN RUPML THRPUN Z^VYK THRPUN 0 NV[ YLHSS` PU[V [OH[ š >OPSL Z\JO OVIIPLZ ^V\SK IL \UPX\L L]LU MVY Z[\KLU[Z UV^HKH`Z P[ ZLLTLK ]PY[\HSS` PTWVZZPISL MVY H JVSSLNL WYVMLZZVY @L[ +Y +H]PK >LPZIHY[ KLĂ„ LK [OL VKKZ Growing up in in nearby Santa Monica, Weisbart did not venture far in the earlier years of his life. He attended UCLA for his undergraduate years as a mathematics major, although he ironically spent much of his time studying Old Norse and Viking Age archeology. “I really didn’t take any math classes for a long time,â€? he stated, “Maybe one my first quarter, but then not again for several years.â€? In fact, one of Weisbart’s most fond memories of his undergraduate experience was his time spent working in the Old Norse department and learning the language. He rekindled his interest in math through UCLA faculty member, Nathaniel Grossman. “He took me under his wing and taught me a lot about mathematics,â€? Weisbart elaborated, “And a lot of people in the math and physics departments really inspired me. A lot of people helped me and it peaked my interest.â€? Above all, though, he stated that his favorite

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experience in college was that “I didn’t really pay attention to my requirements. I simply took classes that I wanted to take. And I learned a lot of things that I found interesting from professors that I found to be interesting people.� Even though he retained his interest in Old Norse, Weisbart decided to pursue mathematics, attending graduate school in the UCLA mathematics department as well. Soon, he managed to reconcile his two interests by attending the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU, Norges teknisknaturvitenskapelige universitet) in pursuit of mathematics and physics. Weisbart explained, “I really didn’t know whether I would go into math or physics. It was chance that determined it for me.� As an established mathematics professor, Weisbart still enjoyed indulging in a myriad of hobbies. In addition to his time spent in Norway, Weisbart enjoyed visiting sites around the world. “I travel a lot. There are a lot of places around the world that I really want to see.� He also enjoyed woodworking, electronic, and athletics. “I like being in the action. I’m not huge on team sports, but I tend to like doing and watching individual sports

more. But [when I taught at USC for a semester in 2006], our football team beat SC. I walked in to class and the student’s were all upset. That was the one time I had some fun with [team sports].� Of course, he enjoyed forging. “One of my favorite experiences in college, every week, my brother and I would home [after class] and fire up the forge and hammer things out. I still do a little bit of that,� Weisbart related. Above all, students benefited from Weisbart’s actions in the classroom. “[My favorite thing about being a professor is] being constantly challenged by smart students. I like the intellectual challenge, and I like the personal development that comes with it,� Weisbart said, “[My students] add a lot to my life, and I’m very happy to have the opportunity to teach these classes.� Conversely, he admits that he strongly disliked the testing aspect. Weisbart explained, “I think that university is a sanctuary where people who want to learn can learn. It should be about developing oneself and discover one’s potential. When you put test and grades into that, it sours it.� Nevertheless, Weisbart had put his best foot forward in his efforts as a professor. Asked what advice he would give his students,

Weisbart simply stated, “I spent five years in college. My only regret was that I didn’t spend six. And if I spent six, then my only regret was that I didn’t spend seven [‌] I’ve enjoyed my time at UCLA from the time I was here as an undergraduate until now. And I hope that everybody who goes through the program here has as much fun as I had.â€?

OPPPOSITE | Professor David Weisbart poses as he tells BruinLife his experience as a mathematics professor. PHOTO | KAREN CHU. ABOVE | David Weisbart reiterates a mathematic formula to his students. Weisbart did both his undergraduate and graduate careers at UCLA. PHOTO | PEIWEN WU. BELOW | Weisbart further explaining the reasoning behind the mathematic formulas on the blackboard. His passion for teaching and the material can be clearly seen by students in his class. PHOTO | PEIWEN WU.

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