Alexander Siegenfeld is a PhD graduate from the MIT Physics Department researching political and economic systems at the New England Complex Systems Institute and the MIT Center for Constructive Communication. He received a B.S. in physics and mathematics, also from MIT, and is a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow and a Hertz Fellow.
Originally interested in combining chemical intuition with mathematical rigor to further the understanding of materials with exotic and useful properties, he shifted his focus to applying concepts and methods from statistical physics to further the understanding of social phenomena, including instability in democratic elections, macroeconomic development, and the interactions between social and biological systems that cause and can stop the spread of disease.
Apart from research, he enjoys playing piano, mixing cocktails, teaching, reading, and reflecting.