Welcome to Thunderdome: About Me

“Who am I?” A question with the potential to query an existential introspective quandary, yet one I expect is the reason for your valued virtual presence. To quell your insatiable curiosity, I will attempt to elucidate and expound on the JVT mystery.

My name is James Talwar and currently I spend the bulk of my time demystifying genetic bases of biological variance. As a Ph.D. candidate in Bioinformatics and Systems Biology in the Carter lab at the University of California San Diego, my research is centered around two goals: 1) Developing and deploying novel neural network solutions for genetic risk prediction and 2) Identifying immunogenomic contributions to cancer risk, with a specialized focus on the autoimmune-cancer interplay. Didactic disruption (or making science less stuffy and more comprehensible) is also a personal passion. The Library here is a reflection of this perilous pursuit - a collection of tutorials and scientific summaries in my personal style: one that makes rich use of avid alliteration, apt analogies, mellifluous metaphors, and preposterous ponderosity.

When not riveted by research, you can usually find me playing poker, banging away at a piano, performing insane (or so I’ve been told) workouts, and rekindling my younger chess glory days. I also enjoy adding some levity to The Library by writing about some of the crazy characters I’ve had the pleasure to encounter. I hope our paths cross in the near future, but in the interim if you have any questions, qualms, or thoughts - feel free to reach out. Otherwise I wish you good fortune: May the odds be ever in your favor!