易胜博官网

To Chanda Prescod-Weinstein, who joined 易胜博官网 as an assistant professor of physics in January 2019, boundaries are for breaking.

The first black woman to hold a faculty position in theoretical cosmology and one of 15 black women recognized by for 鈥減aving the way in STEM,鈥� her scholarship breaks down intellectual, disciplinary and even departmental barriers.

As a cosmologist, Prescod-Weinstein studies dark matter, work that鈥檚 at the intersection of physics and astronomy. 鈥淚鈥檓 either thinking about things that are very small, like particles, or things that are very, very large, like galaxies, or clusters of galaxies,鈥� she says.

And while the physics department will be her primary academic home, she鈥檚 also on the core faculty in the , a role that unites her passions for physics and activism. 鈥淚鈥檓 a natural counter, and that鈥檚 not limited to counting particles and galaxies,鈥� she says. 鈥淚鈥檓 also counting people who are in the room with me and thinking about why I鈥檓 the only black woman there, and how does that shape what we know about physics? I鈥檓 interested in enhancing the participation of minoritized people in physics.鈥�

expansive intellectual universe contains more than just physics and astronomy, women鈥檚 studies and activism. Author of a forthcoming book called The Disordered Cosmos: From Dark Matter to Black Lives Matter (Bold Type Books, 2021), she writes about science and social justice for mainstream media, boasts 46,000 followers on 鈥� and is a certified Pilates instructor.

Prescod-Weinstein praises 易胜博官网 and the for embracing her multitude of interests. 鈥淥ne of the reasons I鈥檓 so excited about 易胜博官网 is that I don鈥檛 feel I need to pretend to be someone else,鈥� she says. 鈥淧eople here are very proactively welcoming.鈥�