Join us for an evening of stories about acceptance - whether that is accepting ourselves, our circumstances… or simply accepting help! Spend the evening with 5 stories about science at Caveat, NYC!
Hosted by Diana Li and Paula Croxson at Caveat NYC. Doors at 6:30pm. Show starts at 7:00pm.
In person and livestreamed. Early bird tickets available until until April 6, 7:00pm.
Karmela Padavic-Callaghan is a science and non-fiction writer based in Queens. They are a reporter at New Scientist, write the Substack newsletter Ultracold and their first book, Entangled States: A Life According to Quantum Physics, is forthcoming from Beacon Press in May. Before pursuing a writing career they completed a PhD in theoretical physics and published several academic studies. They are an amateur vegan baker and distance runner.
Vyshnavi Vennelakanti is a postdoctoral researcher working in the field of computational catalysis. She completed her PhD in Chemistry at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and her postdoc at Princeton University. Her research aims to understand how enzymes effortlessly perform complex reactions under ambient conditions, and to use those insights to develop sustainable industrial catalysts. Outside of her research, she is passionate about mentoring and science communication, specifically science storytelling. Vyshnavi enjoys singing, hiking, knitting, birding, and traveling. Through this story, Vyshnavi hopes to humanize the scientist behind the science and hopes to let other scientists know that they are not alone while facing obstacles in their research journey.
Kevin McNulty is a New York-based comedian who writes and performs at the Upright Citizens Brigade. The hour long version of his solo-show, Half-Orphan, will be at the Edinburgh Fringe this summer. He previously spent nearly a decade as an investment banker and economic researcher, where he formed an unhealthy attachment to telling stories through charts.
A native New Yorker, Ricky Ortiz is a professional, a husband, and a father who is deeply committed to his faith, family, and community. He brings intentionality to every area of his life—from his work, to his friendships, and to his engagements with neighborhood organizations.
Ricky is passionate about helping others think deeply about what they believe, why it matters, and how it impacts the world around them. He views his work as helping people explore the intersection of faith and everyday life through cultural and societal engagement.
An avid storyteller and ever-curious, Ricky is a firm believer in the significance and the power of sharing vulnerable stories that speak to the heart and build connection with one another.
Outside of work with Meta Church NYC, Ricky loves experiencing the world and culture through food. He's also a fitness enthusiast, having run the NYC Marathon as well as several ultra-marathons.
Weiji Ma received his Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Groningen, the Netherlands, but ended up strongly disliking working in Physics. He did postdocs in computational neuroscience at Caltech and the University of Rochester, but then realized he cared much more about measuring human behavior. Weiji became faculty in 2008 (in Houston, TX) and moved to New York University in 2013, where he is now professor of neuroscience and psychology. His research has covered many areas, including visual decision-making, multisensory perception, visual working memory, metacognition, multi-step planning, problem-solving, mindsets, and procrastination. Nevertheless, it hasn't helped him make better decisions or reduce his own procrastination.