Other
Things that matter to me but do not belong in any of the other sections. Interests that shape how I think even when they are not directly tied to research or building.
Science fiction
I read speculative fiction seriously. The best sci-fi is philosophy with a deadline — it forces a concrete answer to questions that academic writing can keep deferring. Asimov, Le Guin, Liu Cixin, Greg Egan. I am particularly drawn to fiction that grapples with computation, consciousness, and the long arc of physics.
Physics and mathematics
Not just as tools but as objects of study in themselves. The Riemann zeta function, the structure of Hilbert spaces, phase transitions. I find the unreasonable effectiveness of mathematics genuinely unsettling in a good way.
Papers
I read more papers than anything else. Preprints on arXiv, old IEEE proceedings, obscure conference proceedings from the 90s. I take notes in the margins and argue with authors in my head.
Music
Playlists that accompany different modes of work and thought. I tend to associate particular records with particular problems I was working on at the time.