- Canada's most competitive PhD scholarship (~4% acceptance rate)
I enjoy making, drinking, and sharing coffee. I use the Breville Bambino Plus espresso machine and the Smart Grinder Pro. I'm constantly trying to improve my latte art.
GolfI got into golf during the pandemic as a way to see friends while social distancing, and I’ve been an avid (but mediocre) golfer ever since. I’ve played in 3 countries, 9 states, and 2 provinces, and I’m always looking for a playing partner during conferences.
TravelMy wife and I love traveling, here’s where we’ve gone over the last four years: Canada (Edmonton, Montreal, Quebec City), Costa Rica (La Fortuna, Tamarindo), England (London, Oxford), France (Lisieux, Lourdes, Paris), India (Goa, Mangalore, Mumbai), Indonesia (Bali), Ireland (Dublin, Galway), Italy (Florence, Rome), Mexico (Mexico City), Portugal (Fatima, Lisbon, Porto), Singapore, Spain (San Sebastián), Switzerland (Zurich), United States (Boston, Hanover, Montpelier, New York City, Portland, Washington DC), Vatican City.
BooksAcademic papers took over my reading for a while, but I’m commited to read more novels and memoirs in 2025. Here’s what I’ve read so far: Born a Crime (Trevor Noah), Call for the Dead (John le Carré), Kitchen Confidential (Anthony Bourdain), Life of the Beloved (Henri Nouwen), Mort (Terry Pratchett), Murder in Retrospect (Agatha Christie), The Mysterious Affair at Styles (Agatha Christie), The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (John le Carré), Of Mice and Men (John Steinbeck), Stay True (Hua Hsu), The Apollo Murders (Chris Hadfield), The Undoing Project (Michael Lewis), Trickery (Roald Dahl). I'm open to further suggestions!
SeminarianBefore grad school, I spent four years living and studying at St. Augustine’s Seminary, training to become a Catholic priest. This period partially overlapped with my undergrad studies. Life as a seminarian involved around 30 hours a week of communal and volunteer activities, alongside an overloaded engineering course schedule to complete the equivalent of a Minor in Philosophy. These courses served as prerequisites for a Master of Divinity, of which I completed one year. Both programs were offered in affiliation with the University of Toronto's School of Theology. During this time, I also had hundreds of public speaking engagements, ranging from intimate groups to audiences of several hundred. After much reflection, I chose to follow a different path, but the experience has forever shaped me. I’m always happy to chat about this journey (and people usually have lots of questions), so feel free to ask anytime!