Organization: Argonne National Lab
Project: AI-Powered Analysis of Renewable Energy Laws
Where did you grow up?
I was born and raised in Mersin, a city in Türkiye on the Mediterranean coast. I moved to the capital, Ankara, for college and after graduation I came to the USA for PhD studies.
What’s your field of study and how did you get into that field?
I started studying chemistry in college, but ended up getting bachelor’s and master’s of science degrees in physics. Later, I started as a physics student in the graduate program but ended up getting a chemical physics PhD from the chemistry department of UIUC. Quantum mechanics is what attracts me to science and connects chemistry and physics for me.
What fascinates you about HPC?
The fascinating part is that HPC can help us solve orders of magnitude more challenging problems for chemistry and material science. Quantum mechanics provides us with the formulations and HPC can provide the answers that regular computing resources can not.
What’s your current title and what do you do?
I am an assistant computational scientist at Argonne National Laboratory. I work on projects related to quantum chemistry and data science.
What energy topic is most important to you and why?
The energy topic that I consider most important is the fair transition to renewable energy resources to mitigate the risks of climate change. The conditions for this transition can vary widely among different territories and states due to natural, social, and regulatory differences. For instance, areas with abundant sunlight or wind may have different opportunities and challenges than those with less renewable resources. Similarly, social and economic disparities can influence how easily communities can adapt to new energy systems. Therefore, it’s essential that policies and laws are carefully designed to account for these differences and to ensure a just transition. This means not only promoting renewable energy but also ensuring that the benefits and burdens of this transition are shared equitably. This issue is important to me because I believe in the importance of both environmental sustainability and social, and the transition to renewable energy provides a key opportunity to advance both.