Bulbul Chakraborty

Professor of Physics
Ph.D., SUNY-Stony Brook

Current research
What do sand, coal, cereal, ice cubes, marbles, gravel, sugar, pills and powders have in common? They are all granular materials, members of an unruly family of substances that refuse to completely conform to the laws of behavior for either solids or liquids. My research focuses on using the tools of traditional theoretical physics to construct a robust framework that can describe these materials that we see all around us (see Science Daily article).

Favorite classroom experience
I was teaching a graduate class on statistical mechanics, in my early days at Brandeis. During a lecture on a difficult concept, a student asked me if I could please use more illustrations instead of writing equations. I did, and that seemed to help. A few minutes later, I drew a figure to further illustrate the idea. At that point another student chimed up saying figures did not mean anything to him, and could I please write down the equation!

What makes Brandeis special
The ease of interaction between faculty and students.

Last book read for pleasure
“Just Above My Head” by James Baldwin.

Favorite world city to visit
Venice. I love St. Mark’s Square early in the morning or late in the evening when the crowds have thinned. The alleyways and the covered bridges are full of mystery. One city that I would love to visit but I have not yet is Cairo.