To complete our trio of Manchester University students we have Dan who studies straight physics. He says he’s always had an interest in particle physics (it being his favourite branch of physics) and coding as well, which luckily often go hand in hand. 

Dan worked on algorithms for the current ATLAS upgrade, piecing together the tracks of long-lived particles from raw data. During this he gained proficiency in ROOT (CERN’s specific program for plotting histograms), a better overall understanding of how particle detectors work and how the research process works.

    He applied for the summer placement to make good use of his summer, boost his chances when applying for PhDs and he liked the look of the particular project. Often projects have been started by previous students, but Dan was particularly after a new one. He appreciated having guidance but not a set plan for his particular project; he was given freedom but there was help there whenever he asked. In addition, he believes the ‘make sense of the nonsense’ style of the work is closer to the style of a PhD than his previous learning experience.

Supervisors: John Baines & Julie Kirk

If you're interested in joining us as a summer student please click here to find out how to apply and more.