Kuunal Mahtani

Welcome!

I am a PhD Physics student at the State University of New York at Stony Brook (SUNY Stony Brook).


This site serves as a showcase of my academic and professional accomplishments thus far, in addition to showing a bit of my personality. If you are viewing the site on mobile, note the navigation bar can be accessed using the button on the top left.


If you would like to contact me, please feel free to reach out using the contact information provided or fill out the form on the "Contact" page. I shall respond as soon as I am able to! ^_^

Abilities & Qualifications

 

Programming Languages

C++

Bash Scripting

ROOT

Python

LaTeX

Microsoft VBA

CSS

HTML

Other Software

Linux

DaVinci Resolve

Inkscape

GIMP

AutoCAD

SolidWorks

Hands-On Skills

Machine Shop

Comfortable with both metal and wood work

Laboratory Skills

Personal Values

Self Improvement

My greatest fear is to live a life of stagnation; one where I no longer aim to improve. I try to spend every minute of my life pushing myself to improve beyond what I am capable of. The reason for my success thus far is not attributed to my natural talent, rather it is to my dedication and persistence to my passion. I love studying physics, I do practice problems for fun and constantly question what I don't understand; because learning something new that evades my understanding for hours before finally adding to my knowledge stands a testament to how much hard work can propel me forward. I try to extend this philosophy not only to my work but my personal life as well - every time I cook I try to think how I can cut better, how I can time my cooking better, how I can continually work to improve such that the final dish I create tastes as good as possible. I never want to be satisfied with where I am at and how much I know; I want to always improve, to always get better and to always push the apparent hurdle that some insist on calling "my limits." The only way to know what my limits are is to continually push myself to test how much I can take - but I find that for every time I do so, I increase those apparent "limits." The only competition I have is with myself - I do not need to be better than any other person aside from who I was yesterday.

Lifelong Learning

Learning does not end in the classroom, you carry it everywhere you go and can learn about any number of things from any number of people. I find that the most knowledgeable thing I can say as a 25 year old is that leagues more people know more than I - and (given appropriate credibility) I should be willing and open to learn and listen from them.

Hard Work

Physics isn't my strongest subject; in fact I find that it is the one subject I find most challenging. I find that I have to constantly work twice as hard just in order to keep up with everyone else around me. However, I would much rather work that hard and reap the rewards of my struggle than have a reward handed to me directly without having to work for it. I find that satisfaction comes after being productive; not necessarily after succeeding, but rather after failing, again and again and again in the constant pursuit of success only to keep trying and pushing myself even further beyond. The catharsis amassed once a victory like that has been achieved is greater than any other feeling in the world.

Languages

English

Proficient and fluent

French

Basic conversational abilities

Indonesian

Basic conversational abilities