Nick Hilgert

2020 Fulbright U.S. Student Program Grantee

Hometown

Indianapolis, IN

Major

Physics

College

College of Science; Honors College

 

Nick Hilgert will be working on a biophysics project at the Max Planck Institute for Complex Systems in Dresden, Germany. His project seeks to explore theories about the origins of life through combined biological and physics research measuring entropy in non-equilibrium thermodynamic systems.

 

Hilgert is particularly glad to pursue his research at an institute celebrated for its pioneering physicists and biologists. As Hilgert says, “Non-equilibrium thermodynamics is not taught in detail during undergraduate coursework, and has not yet become a standard topic even in graduate-level coursework due to its groundbreaking nature.” The very intersection between the physics of thermodynamics and the energy requirements of biosystems makes this challenging field a natural fit for Hilgert, who is fascinated by interconnections between theoretical notations and physical phenomena.

 

Music and literature form two more of Hilgert’s abiding interests, and he hopes to develop German language skills sufficient to reading Vonnegut in the original and to track down the eponymous slaughterhouse of Slaughterhouse 5 during his time in Germany. Upon his return, he will pursue further graduate education.