UCB 232
Boulder, CO 80309-0232
Undergraduate Education
I received my undergraduate degree in PPE (Philosophy, Politics and Economics) from Lancaster University (England).
Where is the coolest place you have traveled?
Back home. My hometown is Berg in Bavaria (Germany), where Ludwig II was assassinated. That’s the guy who had the Neuschwanstein castle built. I love swimming out on the lake (Starnberger See) and looking back at the dense growth of lush green trees…
What do you like to do in your free time?
My free time is spent keeping up with my 3 and 5 year old and discovering the world anew through their eyes. An eclipse isn’t of much interest to them, but watching air bubble up in water blown in through a straw is fascinating and demands endless repetition – apparently!
What are you currently researching?
I am fascinated by questions of social group membership. Is membership in the control of the individual, the members of that particular social group, or the larger community? It is clear that social groups are socially constructed entities, but nevertheless, there are norms for membership that are outside of the control of individuals. We increasingly find it acceptable for individuals to switch gender, but not their race. This has me wonder whether gender and race are fundamentally different social constructions.