What is your position or role in the DESI project?
I am a PhD student and currently contributing to cosmic void projects in DESI, specifically testing and validating the FirstGen simulations and investigating the systematics within them. I have led a similar project in DES, and in DESI, we aim to use DESI Legacy Survey DR9 data to probe high redshift voids and their cross-correlations on the CMB. This will further shed light on CMB lensing or ISW imprints from cosmic voids.
Where were you born?
I was born in Istanbul, Turkey. The Asian side of Istanbul, to be specific 🙂
What is the most interesting or exciting thing about your job?
Finding something new, previously unknown, albeit small, and contributing to the knowledge of humanity. Sharing these results with others at conferences and hearing their opinions is also a fun part.
Any advice for an aspiring scientist?
Science is undoubtedly a collaborative effort and mostly driven by curiosity, so it is important to choose a topic you are very interested in and collaborate with people you would like to work with. This is an important part of the job. You will face many barriers and problems, so it is important to be resilient and solve the problems as they arise.
What do you do for fun?
I am an avid hiker and traveler, and I try to hike and travel as much as possible. I particularly enjoy snowboarding and have climbed some 6000-meter peaks in the past. Recently, I have become interested in sailing as well. In addition, I enjoy drone photography and wildlife photography, and I have been to Africa a few times.
If you weren’t a scientist, what would be your dream job?
In the past, I considered being a guitarist, to be honest! But I was very interested in science, particularly physics and astronomy, so I decided to pursue science. I think I would be a good entrepreneur as well, as I always come up with new ideas.
What excites/interests you most about DESI?
I think DESI’s ability to measure the dark energy equation of state excites most of us, including me. The fact that it has significant potential to indicate new physics or validate our current cosmological model is a great excitement for many of us.
