Graduate Student Spotlight: Cole Cadaram

Originally from the Puget Sound area of Washington state, Cole Cadaram is now in his second year at MIT, where he is a member of the Surendranath Lab.

“I chose to do a PhD in chemistry because what good are all the notes if you’re not making music,” said Cole. “In my research I ask how reactions at surfaces are sensitive to differences in electrical energy between phases. This question has been extensively examined in the context of reactions that involve explicit charge transfer–electrochemical reactions. As for ‘thermochemical’ reactions, how these electrical phenomena affect reactivity is an open question.”

As the subject of this Graduate Student Spotlight, Cole reveals the best/worst movie universes in which to live, three of his favorite fictional characters, the piece of furniture he really wants but can’t afford, and more!

1. What game or movie universe would you most like to live in? What would be the worst to live in?
   In the movie Snowpiercer, the last survivors of earth are stuck on a train and live very poorly, but they eat these black gelatinous protein blocks made from bugs, and I would love to try one. And there’s this movie Equilibrium where emotion is outlawed, and the enforcers practice “gun kata.” I would hate to live there.
2. If you didn’t have to sleep, what would you do with the extra time?
   Rest is very important to me. I am a dreamer. If I could not sleep, then maybe I would take up boxing and get knocked out every night.
3. Who are three of your favorite fictional characters?
   Joker from Joker, Taxi Driver from Taxi Driver, and Gamer from Gamer. These guys really taught me a lot about society.
4. What is the best vacation you’ve ever taken?
   After graduation my best friends and I went around India and Rome. I feasted like I have never feasted before. One of the best days was in this beach town, Gaeta. We ate some incredible fish-stuffed-calzone-pie-item and then frolicked in the ocean until sunset.
   
5. Who would be the best person you could be stuck in an elevator with?
   A mechanic. Haha–let’s get out of here.
6. What are some small things that make your day better?
   Shooting darts and staring at the sun.
7. What’s worth spending more on to get the best?
   Your home and furniture. I lived in a basement during my first year at MIT and when you are down there in the dirt it does something to you. Now I am living on the second floor and hold a higher station in life.
8. What movie title best describes your life?
   Gamer.
9. What is special about the place you grew up?
   Growing up in Washington state, my backyard was the forest, wetlands, and ravines. My chores were breaking down beaver dams, chopping down trees, digging drainage channels, skimming frog eggs off our pond, and occasionally throwing snakes out of the house. I saved a cat and her unborn children from the river coyotes once.
10. What chance encounter changed your life forever? 
    The ending theme of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure put me onto Pat Metheny, a precious muse of mine.
11. If you could have a never-ending candle that smelled like anything you wanted, what fragrance would you want it to be?
    Smelling salts. I think I would be so much more alert and active.
12. If animals could talk, which animal do you think would be the most annoying, and why?
    Squirrels. Those guys are always tweaking, and I can’t deal with that anxious energy around me.
13. If you could pick any career other than the one you’ve chosen, what would it be?
    Maybe I would like to be a commercial diver. I love scuba diving; it is so quiet and peaceful down there. The ocean is a whole other world that you otherwise never get to experience.
14. What food do you crave most often?
    Snowpiercer protein block. Bacon, egg, and cheese on an everything bagel.
15. What are you most looking forward to in the next decade?
    Bug cuisine hitting the mainstream in the US. Agriculture’s going to evolve, and we will all start eating bugs. When I was a kid I ate a lot of grasshoppers, and honestly, they were delicious, nutty, and umami. Let’s make it happen–save the planet.
16. What one thing do you really want but can’t afford?
    The Herman Miller Eames Lounge Chair. It costs a cool five thousand dollars. You really do feel prestigious in them, and they are very comfortable.
17. What is on your bucket list?
    I would like to spend a long time on a ship. It’s probably brutal out there, but I would love to get sprayed down by the sea and live a simple life of slinging ropes and fishing.
18. What bends your mind every time you think about it?
    The sensory experience. I keep on asking people if they know how smell works, and nobody’s got a clue.
19. What hobby would you get into if time and money weren’t an issue?
    Woodworking. If I was good with wood then I would make the Herman Miller chair, artisan toys, and the finest instruments.
20. If you could know the truth behind every conspiracy, but you would instantly die if you hinted that you knew the truth, would you want to know?
    I don’t believe in conspiracy theories. Nobody would lie to me, and everything is just as it seems.