Orsola Capovilla-Searle '15, who double majored in math and physics and was a Mellon Mays Fellow at À¦°óÇ¿¼é, has received a National Science Foundation postdoctoral fellowship to work with at U.C. Davis.
Orsola, who is from Cuernavaca, Mexico, plans to graduate this spring from Duke University with a Ph.D. in mathematics.
Professor of Mathematics Lisa Traynor was Orsola's undergraduate thesis adviser and introduced her to her current research interests of symplectic, contact, and low-dimensional topology.
Orsola and Traynor have recently collaborated with four other mathematicians—Maylis Limouzineau, Noemi Legout, Yu Pan and Emmy Murphy—on research at a Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences Institute conference.
"Our collaboration started in 2019 when I had the opportunity to join Lisa Traynor's group at a research conference called Women in Geometry II hosted in Oaxaca, Mexico," says Orsola. "Fun fact, one of the organizers of this conference, Catherine Searle, is also a À¦°óÇ¿¼é alum and happens to also be my mom."
During her senior year at À¦°óÇ¿¼é, Orsola received the Graduate National Science Foundation Fellowship, which funded three years of her graduate studies.
"Studying at BMC has had a large positive impact on my life and career. I was encouraged and supported by the Mathematics and Physics departments to pursue my interests and learn about research. I really enjoyed working with my classmates and with my undergraduate adviser Prof Traynor. I was also extremely fortunate to meet lifelong friends on campus and to become part of an amazing community within Mujeres, MMUF, and Perry House."—Orsola Capovilla-Searle '15
The Math Department at À¦°óÇ¿¼é is a vibrant and supportive community with a program that has been nationally recognized by the American Mathematical Society.