Matangi Melpakkam, 2022 AIP FYI Science Policy Communications Intern

Biography

SPS Chapter: Bryn Mawr College

I am Matangi Melpakkam (she/her), a rising senior majoring in Physics and Political Science at Bryn Mawr College. I participate in my college’s SPS chapter regularly. Aside from academics, I run the IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program at BMC, where we train volunteers to prepare taxes for low-income taxpayers in the Norristown, PA area. I am excited for this internship opportunity because I will be able to combine the skills learned from both of my areas of study to foray into science news writing.

In my free time, I like to read mystery/thrillers, cook, handletter, and swim. I am from New Jersey and my favorite animals are bees. This summer, I hope to explore composting and baking more.

Internship

Host: American Institute of Physics

Project

Abstract

This presentation explores the importance of informing the science community about how science policy priorities are set by Congress and government agencies. It describes two projects I have worked on as the FYI intern, a budget tracking tool and a bulletin on debates over research on the health effects of low doses of radiation. I will explain why these projects and others like them are crucial to the dissemination of information to the science community. Along the way, I will also explain the choices FYI makes on a weekly basis when deciding what news to cover.

Final Presentation

Internship Blog

Week 1: Settling In and Meeting New People

This week has been a whirlwind of new experiences. After moving in on Sunday with the help of my awesome parents, I started meeting many of the other interns. From the beginning, everyone was really friendly and open. On Monday, many of us went to a Memorial Day parade, which was great fun. There were many reenactors and marching bands, and being in DC during Memorial Day was an experience unlike any other. I expect that Independence Day next month will also be spectacular.

We went through an informative orientation on Tuesday at the beautiful American Center for Physics campus (the building is on one of the foci of the ecliptic grounds). After that, I met my mentors, Mitch, Andrea, and Will. My assigned tasks for the next few days were very challenging but also new and interesting! I summarized some bills, attended a briefing, and wrote a few blurbs for the “This Week” publication. I am definitely going to learn a lot over the next two months about science policy and how to report on it.

I’m eager to spend more time with the fellow interns. I really enjoyed baking, playing board games, and exploring with everyone. Just this week, I attended a Memorial Day Parade, went to a drag brunch, smelled a corpse flower, and watched Pirates of the Caribbean for the first time. I’m looking forward to seeing what new experiences we get up to in the next two months.

Week 2: Exciting Lunches

This week, I continued to summarize bills, wrote my first bulletin draft, and attended ICSSI, or the International Conference on the Science of Science and Innovation.

I attended two panels during this conference, and they were enlightening. I learned a lot about the call for open science and government funding. The best part of the conference was the lunch break in between! Lunch was provided, which was my main impetus for staying (one less meal I had to cook for myself!). However, by the end of the break, I was extra happy that I had not chosen to go to the dorm and come back. As I sat at a table with my burrata bowl, I was joined one-by-one by a public policy professor from Hong Kong, a diplomat from the Canadian embassy, a former congressman from NJ, and a co-founder of a scholarly research tool. I was incredibly excited and honored to chat with this group, and it was a huge highlight of my week.

On Thursday, we met with Nobel Physics Prize Laureate Dr. John Mather. It was very exciting to speak with him! He told me that no one can say that they accomplish anything alone, and to value my support system. Also, his favorite card game is Go Fish!

Overall, this week was exhilarating, and I also enjoyed meeting the new intern, playing jackbox.io, hitchhiking back to DC from a failed Halsey concert, visiting the monuments at midnight, going to the baseball game, seeing Rocky Horror, and going to the pride parade.

Week 3: The ACP Balcony

For the past few weeks, I have been telling all my coworkers how cold I get in the ACP building. This week, I realized it may be a blessing in disguise. I spent all of Thursday working on the third floor balcony, and I love it! It has a great chair and is warm without being under the sun. I get to listen to the bird (and the occasional plane) and see the wind ripple through the trees. I can even sit there when it is raining! It has become a great working environment for me, and I’ll have to thank Brad for showing it to me on the first day. I’m still going to start bringing a blanket to work though (just in case!)

My current project at work is focused on low doses of radiation. Because this was not something I was familiar with before, I’ll explain it a little here. Lose-dose radiation is being researched to see if there are significant health risks, especially in comparison of high doses of radiation. I have been not only exploring the science policy side of it, which concerns how the research is done by the government, what regulations are set, etc., but also the socio-political side of it. A few weeks ago, a report was released on the Department of Energy’s research of low-dose radiation. On Thursday, I attended a briefing, where the public could submit their comments for review by Congress.

Listening to these commenters advocate for the National Institute of Health to take over research or for there to be international research as well was deeply moving. Something that I had barely known anything about a few weeks ago great affected the life of these public commenters, and their perspectives changed my perspective on this topic just a little bit. I really appreciated hearing them speak.

This week, I attended an informative talk on Juneteenth with my roommate, and had a wonderful time at the orchestra. Happy Juneteenth, and Happy Fathers’ Day to all who celebrate!

Week 4: Two Walks Down the National Mall

I could not speak about this past week without first acknowledging the overturning of Roe v. Wade by SCOTUS, thus ending federal protection of abortion after almost fifty years. When I heard the news Friday morning, I felt shock, grief, and anger. Although I was initially inclined to rush to the Supreme Court to protest, I walked there instead. I trod along the National Mall for a somber hour as tourists laughed around me. Along my path from the Lincoln memorial to the Supreme Court, I came across many monuments, and felt surprise that my outrage was yet to pervade those standing around them. As I reached the Supreme Court, I stood to the side in my grief and watched the protests, at a loss to do much else. The decision has remained on my mind since, and I mostly now feel fear and uncertainty for the future.

My other experience along the Mall was much more exciting. On Saturday, we interns hosted booths at the Astronomy on the Mall event. Div and I hosted the Trivia and Boomwhackers tables, and it was nice to engage with all the children and adults that stopped by. After, Lucy, Justin, Div, and I walked down the Mall to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art. It was incredible to see various Tamil artifacts from the 12th century Chola Dynasty.

This week at FYI, I started reading budgets. While for most this is a detested task, and I expected as much, I found it rather fun! I enjoyed, if anything, the drama and intrigue of seeing which programs got more funding than others. For example, even though NIST’s budget was purportedly increased, most of the money goes to non-NIST programs, and boy are they sad about it! There was a surprising amount of news in those budget reports.

I also made scones with Nicole, took a picture with Bill Nye, saw the Second City comedy troupe, and read some books.

Week 5: Settling In II, Return of the Settling In

This week has been finally feeling like things have been settling down. I have a semblance of a routine and know my way around DC pretty well now, but I have still been experiencing new things!



This week at work, I have joined a giant undertaking! Mitch, Will, and Andrea are creating a database that tracks important government science organization budgets over a ten year period. This means I read budget documents from 2014. it was definitely interesting seeing how government priorities change over the years and which projects got started or terminated. I also learned to use Microsoft Access, which I didn’t know existed before this week. It is a useful alternative to Excel, but definitely has somewhat of a learning curve.

This week, we interns had a potluck, and Lucy and I brought scones. I was heartened by all the tasty vegetarian choices. This was the first potluck I have brought food to, and I love the idea. Lucy, Taylor, Gizem, and I also went to a talk on exoplanets. This was incredible! The JWST will be releasing photos next week, and it has already discovered 5000 exoplanets, some of which are in habitable temperature zones like Earth. I also enjoyed visiting the National Museum of African American History and Culture and the Old Post Office Tower. The Fourth of July Fireworks on the Mall was also a treat!

Week 6: Bees and Tesla

This week, there is not much to report on the work front. Mitch, Andrea, and Will were on break, so I spent more time working on the same database as last week, completing the budget history for the Office of Science. I imagine this will be the last super chill week, as I will have to soon start focusing on my final project.

On Wednesday, Nicole, Lucy, Taylor, and I made pineapple and mango bread and pumpkin bread. The pumpkin bread came out wonderfully. The other bread... let’s just say we got double the amount we were expecting. Protip: keep the chemistry of your ingredients in mind when you suggest new flavors. Still tasted exquisite though, so that was a win!

I came home on Thursday. On Friday, my dad took me to see his coworker’s bees. Bees are my favorite animal, and it was exciting to see how they can be kept as pets. I also enjoyed eating their honey, which tasted like peaches because they got their nectar from the nearby peach farm.

On Saturday, my dad and I went to the American Labor Museum. This was super interesting, and I learned a lot about the 1913 silk strike in Patterson, NJ. Highly recommend checking this museum out if you are in the area!

Lastly, on Sunday, I completed a Nicola Tesla Scavenger hunt in New York City with my friend. I learned a lot about his life, and saw many Tesla landmarks. Did you know that he felt a deep affinity with pigeons? I also got some delicious chocolate hazelnut gelato.

Week 7: Space Mail

I started this week off at home. After a strong return from Fourth of July at work, I picked up my mom from the airport. It was nice to see her after her long trip to India. I returned to DC on Tuesday and spent Wednesday recording a panel and working on the budget project. This week, I got used to visualizing data from Access on Excel.

On Wednesday, we interns went kayaking. On Friday, I spoke to a bunch of friends, attended a panel on low-dose radiation, and went to Jazz in the Park.

Saturday was quite eventful! I visited the Postal Museum. This museum is definitely a hidden gem. It has many stamps and interactive displays, and I appreciated that I could get through the whole museum within a few hours. There were a lot of space related artifacts, including the first stamps and envelopes in space!

I also made mango sticky rice and cinnamon rolls with Nicole and Lucy. I had never had mango sticky rice before, and I loved it even though I don’t usually like rice. Making the cinnamon rolls was extremely time consuming, and by the third hour I decided that I would only buy all of my future cinnamon rolls.

Looking forward to the next week, our presentations are due and I am excited to eventually present my work. It is incredible that seven weeks have passed already!

Week 8: Taco Night and More Good Food

This week, I continued working on my big data project. I made more charts extrapolating information, and learned how to adjust government budget numbers for inflation.

On Monday, we had taco night! I brought beans and sour cream. The taco potluck was a great idea and super tasty to boot. Tuesday I went in to work and made zucchini chocolate chip bread after. It was the first time I made it, and I brought it home when I came to NJ on Thursday to share with my family. They enjoyed it! Thursday, we visited NIST! Thanks to Taylor, Div, and Valeria for setting this up. I really enjoyed the anechoic chamber; it would make a great meditation room During the weekend, I went to the beach with a friend in rural New Jersey. The flies ate us alive but we still had a restful time.

This week, I submitted my abstract and title for the final project and started the final presentation. It will be exciting to soon share the charts I made this week with the rest of the interns and AIP. I know that giving a presentation can be nerve-wracking, so I wish everyone good luck in their preparations.

Week 9: Almost done!

This week, I pulled numbers from the giant legislation released: The Manchin-Schumer Reconciliation bill and the Appropriations bill. These two bills had a lot of relevant science policy budget figures. I not only enjoyed learning how much was allocated to each agency, but also reading the committee’s admonishments.

Some highlights:
“The committee notes that it has once again rejected NASA’s proposal to reduce the Heliophysics funding.”

“The committee is disappointed in the execution of prior year Heliophysics fundingThe committee is disappointed in the execution of prior year Heliophysics funding”

“In spite of Congress providing the full request for this mission, NASA’s fiscal year 2023 budget documents reveal that the mission is no longer aiming for the 2026 launch window, instead slipping into the 2028 launch window.”

On Tuesday, I saw the Unofficial Bridgerton Musical at the Kennedy Center. The music was great, and the lyrics were okay. They are now being sued by Netflix, so that makes it even more exciting.

On Wednesday, we had another potluck. I brought zucchini chocolate chip bread. I really loved everyone’s food. Shoutout to Nicole’s potato pancakes and Taylor’s compote!

Thursday, I went for a long walk around the city, and saw the South Interior Building, which used to hold the Department of the Interior. It is the site of the seven-day 1972 takeover by the American Indian Movement [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bureau_of_Indian_Affairs_building_takeover... as the culmination of the Trail of Broken Treaties protest.

We also met with Midhat Farooq at ACP, who taught us how to create skills-based resumes. I really like this resume style and hope to use it in the future.

Friday, I walked to get cheesecake and went to Duke’s Burgers with other interns. There were bees there that sat on Valeria’s food!

Saturday, Lucy and I went to the National Museum of the American Indian and saw the Hope Diamond at the natural history museum. There was also a giant elephant at the entrance that originally had tusks that weighed 900 pounds. Imagine carrying that around on your face!

I also experimented with making broccoli stew with no recipe and just throwing ingredients together, and it actually turned out to be tasty! I was both surprised and proud. I made tortillas, which did not turn out as well, and I eventually turned them into chips to salvage them.

Sunday, we went to a crepe restaurant and had a potluck. I brought my stew, and Valeria told me her perfect grilled cheese recipe. Overall this week was both adventurous and delicious.

Week 10: Bittersweet Finale

This week, our last week, was both exciting and emotional. I spent most of work finishing up bill summaries and practicing my presentation again and again and again. I also listened to others give their presentations and we all gave each other constructive criticism. I think the best part of this expansive process was that I could recognize how everyone’s unique perspectives contributed to different opinions they had on every presentation. I really appreciated everyone’s feedback and it definitely made my final presentation better.
The final presentation was exhilarating. I really felt like doing every internship after hearing everyone’s presentations!

Over this internship, all the interns really bonded. We worked well together, both in moments of celebration and in moments of seriousness. This was especially evident on the last few days, when we worked together late to pack the boxes for the next interns.

This summer was unforgettable, and I had so many new experiences. Here are a few:
-my first midnight walk around the monuments
-my first time walking through a flash flood (don’t recommend)
-my first time going to a club
-my first time seeing a corpse flower in bloom
-my first time reading congressional budget documents
-learning about Microsoft Access
-my first time making scones, cinnamon rolls, tortillas, and more!
-my first baseball game
-my first time meeting a nobel prize laureate

Most of all, I am grateful for all the people that I met this summer. I know that I have forged life long connections and, as Brad put it, am now part of the SPS intern family. Thank you all for a great experience. And if you are a prospective intern reading this blog post and wondering whether you should apply, do it. It will change your life.