Conversations with Ethan:
You are studying Computational Biology AND Statistics AND Spanish. Plus you find the time to represent the University on the tennis court. What’s your secret?
Honestly, that's a great question, and if there were a secret I'd share it, but there really isn't one. It's just you and a willingness to put in small, sustained effort over time, plus some sacrifices along the way. Being deliberate with your time matters too. I try not to multitask and instead focus on one thing at a time. If I only have a half an hour to study, it might not be much, but I want that time to actually be dedicated studying, not spent half thinking about research or an upcoming match. What helps is that each of these worlds, computational biology, statistics, Spanish, tennis, all come with their own perspective and its own group of people, and that lack of overlap keeps any one of them from getting stale. At the end of the day, it’s definitely something everyone can do. I've just worked little by little, one hour at a time, and let the effort gradually pay off.
Last year, you secured a team win over #39 Lake Forest College. The UAA brought three more ranked opponents onto the court. How do you succeed, especially with the rugged academic schedule?
The biggest thing that's helped me succeed in both academics and athletics, especially around crunch time with UAAs and finals, is having hard cutoffs and knowing when to switch gears. If I've been doing drills for two hours, another hour isn't going to move the needle much, but switching to an hour reviewing statistical concepts or biological pathways might make a real difference. It also helps to know what you actually need to work on and be okay sitting with that uncomfortable feeling of not being good at something yet. For example, stepping into the court and taking time away from my opponent is something I never did previously, but is something I used to clinch the match against Lake Forest. That's a lesson sports teaches you early, but it's carried over into my schoolwork just as much: if you only work on what you're already good at, you'll never get better than you already are.
Can you discuss Computational Biology for a little bit, please.
That's something one of my favorite professors, Dr. Fay, would be able to explain far better than I could, but essentially, it's a combination of biology, statistics, computer science, and data analysis used to tackle complex biological problems. Living systems are incredibly complicated, so traditional biological modeling often falls short when you're trying to explain things like large-scale genomics or protein folding. There's a certain level of uncertainty built into living systems, and that's where statistical concepts like conditionality and data analysis come in. Computational biology has an extremely broad range of applications, it's actually how the human genome was mapped and assembled. So even though most people might think they don’t know exactly what computational biology is, they've all been exposed to it in some way.
Where does Statistics fit into this?
Statistics has an application in both my current studies and what I hope to do after in the future. Outside of simply enjoying it and wanting to learn more about certain branches, like Bayesian analysis or nonparametric statistics, it was extremely helpful when taking classes like Computational Biology or even for the MCAT. Outside of school, I work as a data analyst for the Akron Children’s Orthopedic Department, which has a very high research output but often gets held up at the data analytics stage so I help get research projects completed and sent to either the poster or publication stage. That’s something I hope to continue doing as there are a lot of questions to be answered in orthopedics, especially pediatric orthopedics, and that’s how I enjoy contributing most.
When you complete your studies at URochester, what is your next career step?
I am currently applying to medical school, so if all goes well, I will start that next year. That just leaves the not-so-simple task of getting in, but that’s a problem for another day! I try not to worry too much about that since a lot of it is out of my hands, so my time is much better served focusing on the here and now, a mindset that has really helped me a lot. Eventually I want to go into orthopedics, which is a really interesting specialty with a lot of former athletes in it, but that’s many years away.
You are a TA for two chemistry classes and one biology class. What sort of topics do you cover?
That’s a fun question since teaching is one of my favorite things. What I like about TAing for a range of classes is how different the subject matter ends up being each time. For general chemistry, we focused a lot on the building blocks of science: atomic structure, periodic trends, balancing combustion reactions, acid-base chemistry, and buffers. For genetics, it was much more applied, so we covered things like evolution, Mendel's findings, and why certain traits or species propagate over others. My favorite topics to teach were Kondrashov's hatchet and Muller's ratchet, which are more complex and in-depth explanations for the benefits sexual reproduction has over asexual reproduction. This fall, I'll be a TA for organic chemistry, one of my personal favorite subjects, and the whole class centers on orbitals, reactions and reaction mechanisms, and why certain products form the way they do over others.
How do your majors work together?
Eventually, I want to be a physician with a dedicated focus on research, so the biology major helps with the medical school prerequisites and it’s one of the standard majors for people integrating into medical school while also learning about how the body and world works. Statistics will allow me to be very efficient in research output for both my own projects and for other people’s as well. They don’t necessarily work together in my day-to-day life but there is a lot of overlap and hopefully when I end up pursuing medicine and research they will work together.
You interned in research at the Cleveland Clinic. What did you take away from that?
The biggest thing that surprised me at the Cleveland Clinic was just how much data and research is currently going on. The physician I worked with is one of the heads of research for the entire Cleveland Clinic and he told me that there are upwards of 400 projects currently in the works. I had no idea that research output at just one hospital system could be so intense, which just cemented my desire to pursue research and be able to contribute as best as I can. I also had fantastic coworkers who all truly wanted to make a meaningful difference in the patients’ lives, which had an enormous impact on the quality and productivity of the work there.
When did you begin playing tennis competitively?
I started playing at a very young age, and there are baby pictures of me trying to swing a racquet, but I only started competing and playing in tournaments around age 11 or 12. I really did not enjoy junior tennis, just because it was so individualistic. The fact that high school and college tennis is a team sport just made it so much more enjoyable for me. I’ve built so many close friendships through collegiate tennis and I wouldn’t give it up for anything.
How did you become involved with the University?
I came across URochester when I was trying to find a college where I could balance playing tennis and pursuing my academic interests as well. Rochester was the one option with a very reputable research system as well as a fantastic biology department. The thing that really sold me, though, was when I visited the campus and met the guys on the team. I stayed with Sid (Tirupati) who ended up becoming a very good friend of mine, and everyone was just so welcoming I knew it was going to be the place for me.
