“I started my freshman year in the fall of 2020, which was a COVID year. It was like pulling teeth trying to meet people and finding ways to get engaged. I think that spurred me to want to get a whole college experience when we got back to campus. Building community is just something I like to do wherever I go. Life is boring when you’re solo.

The physics department was a wonderful, small community that welcomed me into the college. I helped Dr. Gail Zasowski implement the physics department’s peer mentor program to connect new students to resources, make advising appointments, how to talk to professors about research or what have you. It also helps create community because you spend a semester getting to know people—who they are, what their dreams are, what they’re interested in, what they struggle with. Later when other physics students and I became College of Science ambassadors, we shot the idea to our boss, the amazing Sam Shaw, to expand it to the entire college. Wouldn’t you know it, a couple years later the ambassadors have a peer mentorship role!

I first got involved with research by talking to Dr. Ben Bromley, the planet scientist in the department. I wanted to study planetary surface processes, which was more on the geology side of things. That’s how I came to love geoscience. I’ve always liked the outdoors, and geology changes the way you see landscapes. Instead of looking at, say, the Wasatch Front and thinking, ‘Man, those mountains are beautiful,’ your eyes start to pick out details. I can look at structures within rocks and tell you how they were deposited, how old they are and what kind of environment this place was millions or even billions of years ago. One of my professors, Pete Lippert, says that geology is a superpower. You get to see the world in a way that very few people get to, and it’s a pleasure without measure. I love to do it.

I’m happy I did the full physics program because rocks obey the laws of physics just like everything else. Physics made me think about things like energy and motion and, in sort of a nerdy way, I try to apply it to my rock climbing and bouldering, where things like friction and normal forces start to become very important.

My advice to U students is: Don’t be afraid to ask your TAs or professors for help. They’re just people who have lives, crack jokes, love their pets. It’s their entire job is to help you learn the material so, if you have a question, it’s not a stupid question. Also, don’t be afraid to try something new. If you’re interested in research, try asking professors to work with them. Professors love talking about their research—it’s literally their life’s work and their passion. A lot of science is built on fundamentals, so you really don’t need to know as much as you probably think you do.”

—Marcus Tanner, Class of 2025, B.S. in Physics & Astronomy and B.S. Geology & Geophysics, College of Science, from Draper, Utah

• Bianca Lyon associate director of marketing and communications, College of Science
  (801) 587-2999 bianca.lyon@utah.edu