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****since graduating my master's I have been exploring science topics for breadth (see the page above titled "Exploring for Breadth") and occasionally making conceptual art about cognition (see the page above titled "Conceptual Art"). 

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Formal Education

  • M.S. in Mathematics, Wake Forest University (Aug 2020 - May 2022)

    • math GPA: 3.8/4.0, overall GPA: 3.6/4.0, full scholarship & stipend

    • graduate coursework: Measure Theory I & II, Abstract Algebra I & II, Algebraic Topology, Linear Algebra II, Topology, Real Analysis, Numerical Linear Algebra, Bayesian Inference, Applied Bayesian Statistics, Multidimensional Data Analysis

    • two semesters of independent studies under Prof. John Holmes (now at Ohio State) in Distribution Theory and Distribution Theory with applications to Partial Differential Equations

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  • B.S. in Mathematics, Wofford College (Sep 2016 - May 2018 & Feb 2019 - May 2020)

    • math GPA: 3.9/4.0, overall GPA: 3.9/4.0, full scholarship

    • I switched my major from biology to math as a second-semester junior after 8 months of full-time research at the Broad Institute (May 2018 - Feb 2019). For administrative reasons, I had to formally withdraw and then re-apply.

    • upper-level coursework: Computer Architecture, Data Structures & Algorithms, Advanced Game Theory, Point-Set Topology, Probability & Statistics I & II, Nonlinear Dynamics & Chaos Theory, Geometry, Elementary Number Theory, Mathematical Statistics, Abstract Algebra I & II

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Publication & Patent

  • Efficient, continuous mutagenesis in human cells using a pseudo-random DNA editor. Haiqi Chen, Sophia Liu*, Samuel Padula*, Daniel Lesman, Ketner Griswold, Allen Lin, Tongtong Zhao, Jamie Marshall, Fei Chen. Nature Biotechnology. February 2020. *signifies equal contribution. Link to paper. Link to patent.

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Research Experiences

  • Jeremy Gunawardena's Virtual Cell Program. Harvard Medical School. Summer 2019.

    • We used ideas from matrix tree theorems and time-homogeneous Markov processes to model the physical limits of the cleavage mechanism and specificity of CRISPR-SpCas9. After this inspiring and humbling research experience, I studied math textbooks for 2 years.

    • Physical Limits of CRISPR-SpCas9 Specificity. Samuel Padula, Chris Nam, Jeremy Gunawardena. Summer Undergraduate Systems Biology Research Program Symposium. Link to poster.

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  • Fei Chen's In-Situ Biology Lab. Broad Institute (and now Harvard Stem Cell & Regenerative Biology). May 2018 - Feb 2019.

    • The project that I worked on that proved to be successful was the second co-authorship publication and patent that is linked above. I also tinkered with a method for mapping immune cell-to-cell interactions via trogocytosis-mediated cell barcode labeling as well as an approach for tracking cell movements in deep brain tissue, but these didn't come to fruition.​

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  • Suhasa Kodandaramaiah's Bio-Sensing and Bio-Robotics Lab. University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Winter 2018.

    • I spent a month here as a volunteer to become more familiar with ultra-thin and ultra flexible electronics for recording neural activity from mouse brains.

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  • Huaye Zhang's Cellular Neuroscience Lab. Rutgers Robert Woods Johnson Medical School. Summer 2017.

    • ​Samuel Padula, Emily Kelly-Castro, Huaye Zhang. The role of microtubule affinity regulating kinase 1 (MARK1) in synaptic development and cognitive function. Neuroscience Summer Undergraduate Research Program Symposium. August 5, 2017. Piscataway, NJ.

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  • Katherine Steinmetz's Neuroscience of Emotion and Cognition Lab. Wofford College. Fall 2016 - Spring 2017.

    • ​K. R. Mickley Steinmetz, K. S. Arjune, P. G. Bolton, A. E. Brasington, T. J. Bunge, S. V. Padula, T. K. Phillips, V. C. Zarubin; The effect of motivation and valence on attentional scope: An event-related potential (ERP) study. Society for Neuroscience. November 12, 2017. Washington DC.

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TA Experiences

  • As a master's student at Wake Forest University:

    • Multivariable Calculus - Fall 2020 & Fall 2021

    • Graph Theory - Spring 2021

    • Linear Algebra & Differential Equations - Summer 2021

    • Linear Algebra - Summer 2021

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