Mihir Surve is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, working in the Helquist-Wiest Group. He obtained his BS and MSc in Chemistry from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay.
As a part of the NSF Center for Computer-Assisted Synthesis, he is interested in utilizing data-driven approaches to predict and optimize aspects of chemical reactions.
What or who inspired your research and its applications to society?
My research involves the application of data driven methods to discover, optimize and make predictions about chemical reactions. These could potentially aid chemists in designing and synthesizing useful molecules more efficiently. Being a Chemistry major, I had always been fascinated by chemical reactions and interested in understanding how they work quantitatively. This motivated me to start research with Prof. Raghavan B Sunoj at IIT Bombay as a sophomore, which was my first foray into computational and data-driven chemistry. The closed months of the pandemic also allowed for a lot of self-exploration which cemented my interest in the field. So I’d say this exploration period as well as my undergraduate advisor’s motivation equally contributed to my research interest.
What is the most valuable lesson you’ve learned about collaboration from working with people outside of your field?
Sometimes collaborators working in a different discipline bring in a really fresh perspective on problems where the thinking of domain experts might have slightly “narrowed” due to convention/overexposure. Being receptive to the same while establishing effective communication understandable to all is very important for conducive collaboration!
How has the Lucy Family Institute contributed to your development as a research scholar?
The interactions I’ve had as a part of the Lucy Family Institute have always made me think more deeply about the general impact of my research. I think it is easy to get lost in the process of day-to-day problem-solving while not reflecting enough on the broader impact and goals of one’s research. Getting regular opportunities to talk about my work to a highly interdisciplinary audience, as well as getting to know other scholars’ research, has hence been a very enlightening experience.
To learn more about the Lucy Graduate Scholars program, please visit the webpage.