BRIAN MATTES
Tang Soo Do
I trained at C. S. Kim Karate, in Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, for 13 years. Over those 12 years I have competed in many tournaments, represented Pittsburgh in World Championships, become a certified instructor (Kyo Sa Nim), and earned my Master Belt (4th Dan).
Everyone is aware that martial arts teach you how to defend yourself, but what is really incredible is how it changes you as a person, overall. Through teaching, I have grown as a person and (hopefully!) a role model to many people of all ages. I had to learn how to teach a class of people ranging from ages 4 to 74, white belts to black belts, men and women... It was tough! But the people you meet and the bonds you form are for life. When I was hired to work at RPI, it was very difficult to move away from my karate family. Some were my peers, some were my students, and some were my instructors - They were all an enormous part of life that I miss every day.
Photography
My pictures were really bogging down this site, so I have now created a seperate Flickr site.
Please click the button to the left to visit my photostream. Let me know what you think!
Outreach
Outreach is one of my favorite parts about working in the scientific community. I think it is incredibly important to have the ability to communicate with people, and scientific outreach has helped me develop that.
2013 & 2014 - A Day at the Linesville Fish Hatchery
Dr. Rick Relyea, General Public: ~ 3,000 people
2013 - Friend of Erie Wildlife
Dr. Rick Relyea, General Public
2014 - Carnegie Mellon University
Dr. Doonan, High School Students: 30 students
2014 & 2015 - Thomas Jefferson High School
Nicole Cook and Dan Giger, High School Students: 100 students
2015 - Darrin Fresh Water Institute
Rick Relyea, STEM Education Group: 30 students
2016 - Union College Adirondack Days
Caleb Northrop, College students: 100 students
2016 - 4th Annual Adirondack Days at State Capital
Chris Nolan, General Public: ~1,000 people
2016 - First Year Experience at RPI
David Diehl, Incoming Freshmen: 30 students
2016 - Science Festival at MiSci in Schenectady
Roshni Bhambhwani, General Public: ~500 people
Social Media
As stated above, communicating with people is crucial in science, and using social media as a tool can be very effective. Facebook, Instagram, and blog posts have helped get the word of the Jefferson Project out to the public. Stay tuned for an Instagram page dedicated to the project.
So far, media coming out of the Jefferson Project has reached an audience of 169 million people!
A video I created showing the different surveying techniques used at Lake George