Peer Mentoring Program

Hello! My name is Sarah Toth, and I am a senior in Adams House studying History of Science on the Medicine and Society track. I found the HistSci concentration in my sophomore year as a student with multiple interests that spanned medicine, ethics, politics, and literature. I feel lucky to be in a program that allows me to explore all of these interests while pursuing pre-medical coursework. Several of my courses have focused on the law, history, and politics of reproductive science, and my senior thesis project, which analyzes the first course taught at Harvard on Biology and Women's Issues, is an extension of this particular interest. The breadth of this concentration has offered me an incredibly rich academic experience, and I'd love to help other students navigate their many interests and find a path in Hist Sci that works for them.

I'm Frank, a History and Science concentrator in Adams from Farmers Branch, TX. 

I'm curious about how science shapes what we deem healthy, how we argue, and the technologies that help us do it. While conducting faculty-supervised research in 91R, I made a podcast about a California medical facility that set me on a summer covering Silicon Valley and making podcasts in San Francisco. The summer after my first History and Science seminar, I covered abortion rights and young voters for the NPR station serving Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana. I've helped department faculty research industrial psychology, brainwashing, and artificial intelligence integration in psychotherapy. I currently write about Darwinism's influence on Chinese political decision-making, a portion of which was awarded the Ferguson Prize.

Outside History and Science, I led research for an Audible Originals show on ADHD and Adderall, produce a podcast on U.S.-China relations with the New York Times' former Beijing Bureau Chief, and led digital strategy for The Harvard Crimson. Happy to chat and answer any questions anytime!

My main interest being the Philosophy of Science, I tend to combine archival research with pure theory. My favorite people to study are William James, C. S. Peirce, and Thomas S. Kuhn. I edit for the undergraduate philosophy and history of science journals, respectively, as well.

Come visit the site of some of my research: the Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments, located in the Science Center; it's as free as it is fascinating (that is, infinitely fascinating)! 

Outside of academics, you can find me working out at the Dunster house gym, reading in Robbins Library, and going to sleep at precisely 9pm. As a pet project, I am in the process of learning French.

I want to learn from others just as much as I want to help and advise them, so please feel free to reach out to me about any topic that I might not even know much about. 

Hi! I’m Chun-Yu (Danny), a Taiwanese junior in Kirkland House concentrating in History & Science and Integrative Biology. Within History & Science, I focus on multi-scale policy dynamics, exploring topics such as population planning in East Asia and debates over e-waste processing in Ghana. Additionally, I research the savanna–rainforest transition in the Bateke Plateau, Congo, to better understand the dynamics of ecosystem change. My academic interests span anthropology, paleontology, and sustainable development. Outside of academics, I love visiting museums and hiking.

Hi! My name is Maab, and I'm a junior in Kirkland double concentrating in History & Science (Medicine and Society track) and Neuroscience. I absolutely love HistSci, and I would encourage everyone to explore the concentration (or take at least one HistSci class before they graduate!). I'm broadly interested in refugee and immigrant health and health policy. In my free time, I enjoy reading, writing, and exploring new cafes! I always love talking about my HistSci classes and projects, so please reach out :)

Mia DiLorenzo is a History & Science concentrator in Kirkland House, where she studies the relationship between environment, technology, and society. She’s interested in environmental histories of contamination and their intersections with evolving ideas of public land use, outdoor recreation, and suburban development. In her free time, Mia can be found hiking in New Hampshire’s White Mountains, going on long trail runs, or searching for the best breakfast sandwich in Somerville.

My name is Julia Torrey and I am a third-year in Leverett House studying History of Science on the Medicine and Society track! My time in the History of Science department has definitely been one of the greatest highlights of my Harvard experience! I am interested in the history of medicine and psychology, and I am currently writing my Junior Paper on postpartum psychosis. At Harvard, I am a PAF, I co-lead ECHO, one of the peer counseling groups on campus, and I conduct research at Brigham and Women's on gestational diabetes. In my free time, I love to read and run marathons.

Hi! I’m Eunice, a senior in Mather House studying History of Science (Medicine & Society track) and Philosophy, with a secondary in Mind, Brain, and Behavior. My research interests include medical humanities, neuroethics, the history of psychiatry, medicine, and diagnosis, as well as questions surrounding gender, motherhood, caregiving, and loss. I’m especially interested in childbirth trauma and maternal mental health, which are the focus of my senior thesis, supported by the Harvard Mellon Urban Initiative Grant, tracing how shifting cultural and medical understandings of childbirth have shaped maternal emotion.

Alongside my historical research, I work as a clinical psychology researcher at Massachusetts General Hospital’s Postpartum Traumatic Stress Disorders Research Program, where I study childbirth trauma, postpartum depression, and mother–infant attachment. I’m also a research assistant at Harvard’s GenderSci Lab, an interdisciplinary group examining how concepts of sex and gender are constructed and mobilized in biomedical research and public policy.

My favorite courses at Harvard include Knowing the World: An Introduction to the History of Science (HISTSCI 100), Broken Brains: A Patient-Centered History (HISTSCI 1770), Psychopathologies of Modern Life (HISTSCI 1780), Philosophy of Mind (PHIL 156), The Spontaneous Flow of Thought (PHIL 158C), Brains, Identity, and Moral Agency (GENED 1064), Neurobiology of Behavior (NEURO 80), Introduction to Psychological Science (PSY 1), Human Life History (HEB 153), and Disease, Illness, and Health through Literature (GENED 1078). These classes have shaped how I think about the mind, the body, and the stories we tell about illness and care.

Outside of academics, I love teaching children at my church, helping elderly or immigrant community members with tax preparation at the library, and hosting Korean BBQ and game nights for friends in my dorm.

Please don’t hesitate to reach out for coffee or a meal (we can eat at Quincy if Mather feels too far)! I know how exciting—and sometimes overwhelming—it can be to find your own path in this rich field.

Hi! My name is Daniel and I am a senior studying History and Science on the Medicine & Society track. I originally started out my HistSci journey as a pre-med student but now I will be going into consulting after graduation. My interests lie specifically within the history of medicine and the connections to how our society operates in present times. I hope to explore this connection through my Senior Thesis as well. Feel free to reach out if you are interested in how being pre-med can align with the concentration, what careers you can go in to with HistSci, or just want to talk about college life in general!

I have taken a wide variety of courses, ranging from history of medicine, history of technology, and tutorial courses in the department to a bioethics seminar at the Kennedy School and a history of science Gen Ed. My interests focus on science and technology studies, the history of infrastructure, urbanism, and spatial theory. I also serve as an editor for Synthesis and work as a research assistant at Harvard Medical School's Center for Bioethics.