For the third straight year, four University students — the maximum number possible for any one university — have been awarded Goldwater scholarships. Three juniors and one sophomore won the prestigious prize, which is given annually to students in the fields of math, science and engineering.
The students — Allison Bishop '06, Neir Eshel '07, David Konieczkowski '06 and Alexandra Ovetsky '06 — will each receive $7,500 toward tuition, fees, books and room and board next year. The Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation, named after the late Arizona senator and Republican presidential candidate, selected the winners from a nationwide field of 1,091 candidates nominated by their universities.
Bishop, a mathematics major from Omaha, Neb., said she was "pleasantly surprised" when she discovered yesterday morning that she had been chosen for the scholarship. She said she learned the news by checking the scholarship's website.
The current focus of Bishop's research is evolutionary game theory. "We're making models of populations who are passing on certain strategies in games to their offspring," she said.
Outside the classroom, Bishop sings in the University's chapel choir and plays clarinet in the wind ensemble. She is also pursuing a certificate in Women's and Gender Studies, and – like many of the scholarship winners – she wants to eventually obtain a Ph.D. and teach at the university level.
Ovetsky, who hails from Philadelphia, is also a mathematics major. "I was very pleased and honored, of course," she said. "I applied because I thought I would be a good candidate for it, since I'm studying math and had done research."
Ovetsky's current area of research is graph theory. Outside of class, she participates in the University's ballroom dancing team and is a member of the Russian club.
Like Bishop, she hopes to obtain a Ph.D. and become a professor.
Eshel, a senior writer for The Daily Princetonian, is a prospective molecular biology major from Bethesda, Md. He said winning the scholarship was "really exciting."
"It's really helpful monetarily, especially since [as a sophomore] I get it for two years," he said.
Eshel, who said he may pursue a certificate in neuroscience, is currently researching human decision-making. "We're modeling decisions mathematically," he said, adding that he is also incorporating brain activation and MRI studies into his research.
Eshel said his research focuses on temporal discounting.
"If you could have $10 today or $11 tomorrow, you might take the $10, but if you could have $10 in a year or $11 in a year and a day, you might choose the $11," he explained. "It's inconsistency in human decision-making."
In addition to writing for the 'Prince,' Eshel plays in a Klezmer band outside of class and participates in Paideia.
Though he is unsure what he wants to do after graduation, Eshel said he is considering pursuing a joint M.D./Ph.D. degree.
Konieczkowski is a molecular biology major from Cleveland, Ohio.
His research goals include studying "the cellular/molecular biology of specific disease states, and us[ing] knowledge gained by these approaches to develop possible therapies," according to the Goldwater website.
Konieczkowski, who is also working toward a certificate in classics, is a member of Triangle Club and the Aquinas Institute, and writes for American Foreign Policy.
"It's nice to see there's support out there for people who want to pursue a career in research science," Konieczkowski said, moments after a 'Prince' reporter informed him he had won the scholarship.
He also wants to pursue an M.D./Ph.D after graduation.
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