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About Me

Niharika Ranjan :: Department of Physics :: Purdue University
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Rendezvous with me


My uber awesome family :-D

I am technically a pure Rajasthani with a Bihari surname and Bengali looks (for those who don't know Rajasthan, Bihar and West Bengal are states in India which are pretty different in terms of food, culture, language etc). I crossed the international boundary when a staff member in my department told me that I look Mexican! It doesn't bother me at all. I roamed around a lot in India , changed 7 schools in a span of 12 years... thanks to my father's transferable job.

As a kid ( not really a kid - may be around 10th grade ) I wanted to become an IAS ( Indian Administrative Services ) officer, although I loved Physics and Math from childhood ( my friends say that I never had a childhood coz of this reason ). Pretty soon I realized that the frequency of an IAS officer getting transfered had an exponential dependence on the mood of the union/state minister(s) and ofcourse the mood swings were quite random. And learning the rules of conduct of the district court... high court... supreme court... yadda yadda yadda was not my cup of tea! Then I switched my attention to fighter planes while continuing my love for Physics and Math.

My college days were devoted to aiming/dreaming towards joining the short service comission for women in the Indian Air Force. Shortly before the second leg of the interview I fractured my foot and missed the interview. I guess becoming a pilot was not on my cards. Although I had these 'superficial' ambitions, I always felt pulled back towards Physics for some reason. Finally I decided to stick to Physics - and have some fun ( do I hear ya say - yeah :-D right!! ). I completed my Bachelors and Masters degree in Physics, and still had the enthusiasm to apply for a PhD in Physics.

Here I am - this is me
There's no where else on earth I'd rather be
Here I am - it's just me and a few
And we might make our dreams come true

You might be thinking that I am obsessed with Physics... and may be I drink Physics... eat Phyiscs... sleep Physics... read Physics and do nothing else. Neah!! I love dancing - it's my passion and ofcourse listening to music - almost anything - classical, instrumental, filmi, rock, country. Apart from that I like travelling, painting, sketching - but don't get enough time to pursue these activities. I love performing on stage and have done so a few times.


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