Photo by matt d'annunzio

Mark Angeles ’15

chemistry

Hometown: Colorado Springs, Colorado, and the Philippines

[Editor’s note: We are heartstricken to report that Mark was struck down in a traffic collision just nine days after he graduated. Ride in Peace, Mark]

Hometown: Colorado Springs, Colorado, and the Philippines

Who I was when I got to Reed: An impressionable, idealistic, and somewhat naive boy determined to be his own person and find his place in the world.

How Reed changed me: My cultural values taught me to listen before speaking and weigh the pros and cons of every side, often to the point of not participating from uncertainty. Diversity of thought and opinion are what a conference should thrive on. Initially I found it difficult to participate in conference, even though I was overflowing with ideas. At some point, you have to decide what you stand for and what you believe in. Finding my place on that spectrum has been one of the most important things I’ve done at Reed.

A concept that blew my mind: Atoms never die but are endlessly recycled and recombined into different elements that make up the fabric of the universe. Every being, every thing was birthed in an instantaneous explosion at the beginning of time and forged over billions of years, a never-ending cycle of energy remaking itself endlessly through space and time.

Outside the Classroom: Fire dancing with Weapons of Mass Distraction. Managed the Bike Co-op. Learned to be a bike mechanic. House adviser. Sang with the Herodotones. Paideia czar. SEEDS intern.

Financial aid: Having attended this institution on financial aid, I wanted to give back to the community and leave things better than I found them.

Thesis: The Role of Cobalt, Rhodium, and Iridium Bis(imino)pyridine Catalysts in Degrading Chlorinated Ethylenes

What it’s about: Synthesizing certain types of organometallic catalysts to assist in degrading certain types of environmental pollutants. 

What it’s really about: Lab. Lots and lots of time in lab.