Mas Temprano que Tarde
    se Abriran
    Las Grandes Alamedas
    Por donde Pase
    El Hombre Libre!!!

    --Salvador Allende

    Hi. I am graduate student in the physics department at UC Santa Barbara. I study Theoretical Astrophysics with my adviser Omer Blaes. I am primarily interested in the magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) and radiative transfer of highly energetic systems such as black hole, neutron star, and white dwarf accretion disks. Before coming to Santa Barbara, I was an undergraduate at Columbia University where I received a bachelors in applied physics.

    physics links:
    • Los Alamos Preprint Archive
    • NASA ADS abstract service
    • UC Santa Barbara's Physics Department
    • Insitute for Theoretical Physics at UCSB
    • Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics(CITA)
    Here are some links to our silly and irresponsible news agencies:
    • New York Times
    • Washington Post
    • CNN
    • BBC
    • India Abroad
    These are some interesting and helpful webpages:
    • The Nation
    • Harper's
    • New Left Review
    • Z Magazine
    • Counterpunch
    • Village Voice
    • Washington City Paper
    • The Onion
    • Google
    • My favorite radio station
    • Astronomy Picture of the Day
    • NRL Plasma Formula Index
    • SM help
    • LaTeX help
    • Linux Online
    • Santa Barbara Metropolitan Transit
    These are some, but not all, of my friends
    • Brookie Williams
    • Simeon Hellerman
    • David Baghdadi
    • Alfredo Katz
    • Philip Chang
    Personal:

    I'm actually Indian not Greek. My parents were born in the state of Tamil Nadu in southern India. I have two sisters, Malar and Thenral whose names mean "blooming flower" and "gentle breeze" respectively. Shortly after my parents moved to the States, I was born in Manhattan. Then I lived in Virginia for a few years where I cultivated an acute taste for barbeque. In 1982 we moved to a suburb in Connecticut where I more or less grew up until I left for college. In college, I decided to study physics. Now I'm here, trying to become a physicist.

    I am not married, but I have been with my girlfriend, Lauren, for seven years now. Here's a picture of the two of us acting goofy.

    For fun, I like to spend time with my family and friends. I really enjoy going to the movies, museums, and resturants or just hanging out and chatting about things like politics or history. Growing up and in highschool I played tennis, soccer, and the occasional pick-up basketball game. Now for exercise, I like to go running. My hobbies include parasailing, khayaking, spelunking, hiking, camping, chess, high-stakes poker, snorkling, sky-diving, SCUBA diving, abalone diving, marathon running, skiing, snowboarding, fishing, and cooking.

    Aristotle Socrates (socrates@physics.ucsb.edu)