Interview with Kasey Shashaty '23: Sharing Experiences from the ReMatch+ Program - Part 1
In the heart of Princeton University, Kasey Shashaty, a junior majoring in Electrical and Computer Engineering, has embarked on an exciting journey in lab-based research. This interview is part of the "Experiences in the ReMatch+ Program: An Interview with Kasey Shashaty '23" series and offers a glimpse into her research journey.
Kasey's current project at the PULSe (Princeton University Laser Sensing) Lab focuses on airborne COVID detection. Her initial interest in the lab was sparked by the concept of working with lasers. In the summer of 2021, she began her research journey at PULSe.
Due to the program turning virtual, Kasey and her team developed a virtual project that involved creating online tools and programming. One of the tools she created has a database of over 500 interesting molecules. This online tool plots the absorption spectrum of a molecule when given wavelength range parameters.
Kasey's advisor is Prof. Gerard Wysocki, and she will discuss her transition to in-person research in Part 2 of the interview.
For those interested in getting involved with lab-based research at Princeton, more information can be found in the "How to Get Involved with Lab-Based Research at Princeton" article.
The ReMatch+ Program, run by the Office of Undergraduate Research, is designed to make research participation accessible to undergraduates, including first- and second-year students. The program offers a structured system where students submit applications outlining their skills and interests. Faculty or lab mentors then post available research opportunities in their labs, and the program matches students to these opportunities to begin research projects, usually over the summer or academic terms. Students are mentored by faculty, postdocs, or graduate students, engaging directly in experiments or data collection.
Kasey first heard about the ReMatch+ program in her freshman year and applied to it in her sophomore year. The ReMatch+ Program is expected to continue in the year 2024.
For precise details about the ReMatch+ program, you may consult Princeton’s Office of Undergraduate Research website or the ReMatch+ program page directly.
Kasey Shashaty, an undergraduate student majoring in Electrical and Computer Engineering at Princeton University, utilized the ReMatch+ Program to embark on a junior paper focusing on airborne COVID detection. Her project, carried out online due to the program's virtual transformation, entailed creating educational tools for online learning, one of which comprises a database containing absorption spectra of over 500 molecules, aiding in self-development and education-and-self-development.
