Brian Nord
{{use mdy dates |date=November 2021}}
File:Brian Nord, Becoming Interplanetary.jpg in 2018]]
Brian D. Nord is an American astrophysicist and machine learning researcher at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (also known as Fermilab or FNAL).
Early life and education
Nord grew up in Wisconsin.{{Cite web|url=http://briandnord.com/bio|title=Bio|website=Postcards from the Edge of the Universe|access-date=2019-02-23}} Nord studied physics at the Johns Hopkins University, graduating with a B.A. in physics in 2003, and went on to graduate school at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where he got a PhD in physics. Nord's doctoral dissertation is titled Virtual Sky Surveys and Multi-wavelength Investigations of Galaxy Clusters.
Career
After getting his doctorate, Nord won a National Science Foundation (NSF) Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) Fellowship, and remained at the University of Michigan to continue his research. In 2012, Nord became a postdoctoral associate at Fermilab, and joined the faculty of the University of Chicago in 2017.
Nord is part of Fermilab's Machine Intelligence Group, which works to apply Artificial Intelligence to a diverse set of problems in high energy physics, astrophysics, and cosmology.{{Cite web|url=https://www.symmetrymagazine.org/article/studying-the-stars-with-machine-learning |date=October 16, 2018 |title=Studying the stars with machine learning|last=Lamb|first=Evelyn|website=symmetry magazine|access-date=2019-02-23}}
Nord's research focuses on a number of areas in cosmology: he studies novel methods for detecting gravitational lenses,{{Cite web|url=https://www.science.org/content/article/ai-changing-how-we-do-science-get-glimpse|title=AI is changing how we do science. Get a glimpse |date=2017-06-30|website=Science |publisher=AAAS|access-date=2019-02-23 }} as well as cosmological survey simulation and design. Nord's work has been written about extensively in such outlets as The Atlantic,{{Cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/10/using-ai-to-make-space-discoveries/543945/|title=Using AI to Find a Cosmic Looking Glass|last=Sokol|first=Joshua|date=2017-10-25|website=The Atlantic|access-date=2019-02-23}} Science, symmetry, and others.{{Cite web|url=https://www.insidescience.org/news/computer-science-technique-helps-astronomers-explore-universe |first=Ramin |last=Skibba |title=Computer Science Technique Helps Astronomers Explore the Universe|date=2017-01-13|website=Inside Science|access-date=2019-02-23}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.nextplatform.com/2018/04/16/gpus-mine-astronomical-datasets-for-golden-insight-nuggets/|title=GPUs Mine Astronomical Datasets For Golden Insight Nuggets|last=Cuff|first=James|date=2018-04-16|website=www.nextplatform.com|access-date=2019-02-23}}
Public engagement
In June 2020, in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, Nord organized a global "Strike for Black Lives" along with Chanda Prescod-Weinstein and the Particles for Justice Group.{{Cite web|title=Home|url=https://www.particlesforjustice.org/|access-date=2018-10-12|website=Particles for Justice|language=en-US}} Nord authored a letter on the Particles for Justice page titled "How Long Should We Wait?" On June 10, the day of the strike, over 4,500 academics pledged participation in the strike. Additionally, numerous organizations including Nature, the American Physical Society, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Institute of Physics supported and/or participated in the strike.{{Cite web|title=Scientists strike for black lives, a more inclusive academia|url=https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2020/06/11/scientists-strike-black-lives-more-inclusive-academia |first=Lilah |last=Burke |date=June 11, 2020 |access-date=2021-03-03|website=www.insidehighered.com|language=en}}
Honors and awards
- AGEP Postdoctoral Fellowship (2010-2012)
- University of Michigan Rackham Merit Fellowship (2004-2010)
- University of Michigan Marcellus L. Wiedenbeck Teaching Award (2009)
- University of Michigan Jerry Soffen Leadership Award (2004)
- NASA Academy, Goddard Space Flight Center Trustee Scholarship (2000-2003)
- Johns Hopkins University Hess Memorial Scholarship (2000-2003)
References
{{reflist}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nord, Brian}}
Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:American astrophysicists
Category:People associated with Fermilab
Category:University of Michigan alumni
Category:Johns Hopkins University alumni
Category:University of Chicago faculty
Category:Scientists from Wisconsin
Category:American cosmologists