At the time, I thought managing to score a ticket to Stephen Hawking’s talk at Sanders Theatre was likely the high point of my science-writing career at Harvard — after all, I’d be seeing in the flesh the man some consider the most important physicist since Einstein.

But that was before I talked with Cumrun Vafa.

The day after Hawking’s talk, as I was still feeling the afterglow of the event, the Donner Professor of Science called with an offer that nearly made me drop the phone. Would I be interested in attending a dinner party in Hawking’s honor?

My brain screeched to a halt before I managed to stammer my answer. “Yeeeessss?”

A little more than 24 hours later, I found myself knocking on Vafa’s front door, ready to enjoy a Persian feast in the company of Hawking and a good portion of Harvard’s Physics Department. The night would include a sumptuous dinner of kebabs and other Persian delicacies, traditional folk songs, and a “black hole cake.”

When it came time for Hawking to speak, before a group of 70 crowded into Vafa’s living room, he delivered a story not about science, but about a trip he took to Iran in 1962, shortly before he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

After completing his bachelor’s degree at University College, Oxford, Hawking set out to travel with the support of a small grant, having chosen Iran based on the theory, he said, that “my chances of getting one would be greater the further I proposed to go.”

Hawking and his companion, a fellow Oxford student, traveled to Istanbul and then through Turkey by rail. After boarding a bus to cross the border into Iran, they made a circuitous journey from Tabriz to Tehran and across the nation’s central desert.

“On the way home, we were caught in the Buin Zahra earthquake, a massive 7.1 Richter quake that killed over 12,000 people,” Hawking said. “I must have been near the epicenter, but I was unaware of it because I was ill and in a bus that was bouncing around on the uneven Iranian roads.”

Over the next several days, Hawking worked to recover from a severe bout of dysentery and a broken rib he suffered after he was thrown against a seat on the bus. He didn’t know about the disaster because he didn’t speak Farsi.

“It was not until we reached Istanbul that we learned what had happened,” he said. “I sent a postcard to my parents, who had been anxiously waiting for 10 days, because the last they had heard, I was leaving Tehran for the disaster region on the day of the quake.

“Despite the earthquake, I have many fond memories of my time in Iran, and would like to return one day. I am happy to be here with you all tonight. Now, as they say in Iran, ‘Nooshe jan!’”

While it’s natural to think of Hawking as one of the most celebrated scientists in the world, it wasn’t until I saw accomplished physicists snapping photos of him that I fully appreciated what that meant.

Evan Brown, a Kirkland House junior and one of the handful of lucky undergrads at the dinner, summed it up best: “It’s amazing to see people who are very smart and accomplished be intimidated.”

Read more about Stephen Hawking’s visit to Harvard.

Follow @Harvard on Instagram to see photos from campus and around the world.

Q: Knowing what you know now, what would you tell yourself before beginning your Harvard Journey?

Harvard is not like buying a sandwich, it’s not like, ‘Oh, how good was the sandwich?’ It’s not a singular experience you have. It’s your life, you’re here for years, and it’s a big formative part of your life. I’ve had some of my highest highs here ever, but also my lows. And that’s not a bad thing, it’s something to learn from.

James Holloway ‘16
Temecula, California
Studying sociology

Q: Who have been some of the most important people on your Harvard Journey?

I have a very eclectic group of friends, ethnically and religiously. That is one thing I love especially about my blockmates, that there aren’t two people that think the same about everything the same way. We’re called the “interfaith council” by our friends. That’s a big asset of Harvard — being able to live in the same room with other people who absolutely do not believe in what you believe in. Different people think differently and you should still learn how to live with them. We’re eight people and we all have super different views. It makes for the best conversations.

Hajar El Fatihi ‘17
Casablanca, Morocco
Studying applied mathematics/economics

Q: What has been one of the best moments in your Harvard journey?

Even though I have minimal to no hiking experience, I became a leader on the Freshman Outdoor Program (FOP). There’s a lot more to FOP than just hiking. We went through this whole process of training to be a leader, which is pretty intensive. The last week of summer I was so nervous, it really hit me that I would be leading this trip, that I would be leading ten freshmen out into the woods and those lives would be in my hands.

A lot of FOP is self-reflection, and a lot of it is time to be introspective and we give a lot of opportunities to students to process. At the very end of it, we have one final processing activity, after we’re out of the woods, back on campus, and it’s already a jarring experience because you’ve spent a week with this one group of people and all of a sudden you’re thrown into campus when everyone’s here, everyone’s back.

We reflect on the week that has just passed and look forward to what’s about to come and what’s about to start, and I just started crying and it was really embarrassing, but all my kids — I called them my kids even though a lot of my FOPers were older than me — but all my kids started crying, and it was a very touching experience for me. It’s just hard to put into words the kinds of connections you can make on a trip like that and I think it was also a combination a lot of emotions of all different sorts piling up and overflowing.

And it’s such a crazy thing, honestly to me it’s magical the way FOP can bring people together. It’s something that stands out as special and something I’m grateful for, not just to FOP but to Harvard for creating those moments.

Minnie Jang ‘18
Ellicott City, Maryland
Studying history and literature, and pre-medicine

Q: If you had to pick one moment that was the true start of your Harvard journey, what would it be?

We had this Christmas tree in our college counseling office at school everyone had decorated. Acceptances came out at a specific time of day, and I went to the counseling office to log onto the computer and check. My friend already knew he’d been accepted, and he was really hoping that he was going to get in, and I obviously really wanted to get in. I have this really vivid memory of opening the email and being vertical, and then just hitting the ground surrounded by Christmas tree needles and my head was two inches away from this metal thing in the wall. My friend had just tackled me, so it really could have turned out very poorly. But we were so excited because we were going to school together another four years.

Chris Farley ‘16
Rye, NY
Studying government and history

Q: What during your Harvard journey surprised you?

I just auditioned for the Hasty Pudding during my first semester because at the time it just seemed like a fun thing to do. It’s really hard to get into it without having some sort of experience on campus acting in something, just because the process is so quick and so taxing physically and mentally. You’re doing 38 shows and spending all your time with the same twelve people. People want to know they can be in a room with you, not just on stage but backstage.

I was the only freshman my year — I was very lucky to have this role work for me. Things changed in a second when I got into the Pudding, and everything Harvard became this much zanier thing.

Max McGillivray ‘16
North Andover, MA
Studying visual and environmental studies and history

During the summer months, Harvard College students spent their days interning, working, volunteering, and studying. While they were away from campus, they wrote about their summer experiences. Explore the variety of activities they chose around the Boston area, around the country, and around the world.

Rohan Pidaparti

Concentration: Government
Class of 2017, Junior
House: Adams
Summer Location: Washington D.C

This summer I am working for Common Cause, a non-partisan non-profit that seeks to serve as the people’s voice on issues that empower democracy, like elections, voting rights, ethics, and accountability. As a legislative intern, I monitor bills in Congress that are of relevance to Common Cause and help bring together relevant organizations and individuals to make progress on these issues. My time at Common Cause has been a fantastic experience because it means I get to work with great people to ensure that our government remains of, by, and for the people.

Guan-Yue Chen

Concentration: Integrative Biology
Class of 2017, Junior
House: Leverett
Summer Location: Tokyo, Japan

I am in Tokyo over the summer working at igsZ, an education start-up geared towards an immersive style approach to teaching English and standardized testing skills to Japanese students.

Jahnavi Curlin

Concentration: Neurobiology
Class of 2017, Junior
House: Pforzheimer
Summer Location: New York, NY

I’m interning with the Global Health Corps this summer. I just returned from our two week training institute at Yale University, where we prepped our 134 fellows to begin one year placements in an array of partner organizations in Africa and the US! I’m excited about my role in this nonprofit because, as an intern, I get the chance to experience every part of the journey and contribute to global health equity.

Abdurezak Shemsu

Concentration: Economics
Class of 2018, Sophomore
House: Pforzheimer
Summer Location: Morocco

I’m in Morocco taking intensive Arabic for two months. I have class five days a week and live with a host family and spend my weekends traveling and exploring Morocco. Yesterday I camped in the Sahara Desert and got to experience the Berber lifestyle. Also got to cross ride a camel in the desert off my bucket list!

Garrett Allen

Concentration: Cognitive Neuroscience and Evolutionary Psychology, secondary in Dramatic Arts
Class of 2016, Senior
House: Mather
Summer Location: New York, NY

This summer I have been working as an artistic programming apprentice at The New Victory Theater/New 42nd Street and as an artistic intern at Soho Repertory Theater. It has been amazing and rewarding working at two extremely different off-Broadway theater organizations: one in the heart of Times Square specializing on theater for kids and families with 80+ full-time staff and a giant theater space and the other a downtown powerhouse for groundbreaking and daring works with 6 full-time staff and an intimate 73-seat black box theater. It has been incredibly busy but also incredibly fulfilling to see how professional theater works as an aspiring director. In addition to working at these two organizations, I have been able to explore the city, see shows, eat great food, and have fun!

Michael Albergo

Concentration: Physics
Class of 2017, Junior
House: Adams
Summer Location: Geneva, Switzerland

I am working at the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland over the summer. The lab, which runs the largest machine in the world and recently discovered the Higgs Boson, has just upgraded the energy intensity of the experiment, and nobody knows what might show up that will change our understanding of the universe.

Amira Hannon

Concentration: Biomedical Engineering
Class of 2018, Sophomore
House: Cabot
Summer Location: Northwestern University (Illinois)

I’m conducting research at Northwestern’s International Institute of nanotechnology. My research deals with the use of nanoparticles as a means for more targeted drug delivery in atherosclerosis treatment. I enjoy my research because I get to learn from other students and faculty who are at the top of their fields and contribute to meaningful discoveries that have the potential to save lives.

Jesus Moran

Concentration: Government
Class of 2016, Senior
House: Eliot
Summer Location: Washington D.C.

This summer, I am interning for the government and public affairs department at the American Council on Education. ACE is a higher education association that conducts public policy advocacy and research, and as an intern this summer, I have been able to conduct research on current issues plaguing college campuses, such as sexual assault, as well as meet with congressional staff regarding policy being considered as the Higher Education Act is being reauthorized.ong many other initiatives related to higher education.

Marcus Dennis

Concentration: Economics
Class of 2018, Sophomore
House: Kirkland
Summer Location: Cambridge, MA

Over the summer I have been working as a Research Fellow at the Harvard Business School through the Program for Research in Markets and Organizations. I have been studying decision making, marketing, and consumer behavior with Professors Mike Norton and Franchesca Gino. I think it’s cool because I have not only been able to work closely with several faculty members and doctoral students, but also because learning about human behavior from an economics perspective has been very interesting

Jennifer Berrian

Concentration: Psychology
Class of 2016, Senior
House: Cabot
Summer Location: Cambridge, United Kingdom

I’m studying abroad for 8 weeks at The University of Cambridge through the Pembroke-King’s Summer Programme. I’m studying the Bloomsbury Group, Black British History, and the history of disease and medicine in Europe. In my free time, I go out and explore, like seeing Westminster Abbey and Big Ben from 450 feet in the air!

Dan Rubin

Concentration: Chemical and Physical Biology
Class of 2017, Junior
House: Currier
Summer Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts

This summer, I’m working as part of PRISE(Program for Research in Science and Engineering) to research the bacteria and fungi that make up the cheese rind. It’s great that I can study a biological system that’s both interesting and delicious!

Max Whittington-Cooper

Concentration: Economic Sociology
Class of 2017, Junior
House: Quincy
Summer Location: New York, NY

This summer I am a Sales & Brand Strategy intern at BuzzFeed. My work includes conducting deep-dive and competitive analyses, working on internal consulting projects that span tech, business, & editorial, and creating and presenting pitches. I am beyond excited about this internship because it combines creativity, techonology, entertainment, and social networks all into one job.

Maria Zlatkova

Concentration: Computer Science
Class of 2018, Sophomore
House: Cabot
Summer Location: Menlo Park, CA

This summer I’m doing a mobile development internship at Facebook in Menlo Park. I’m working on Android and making my own app as part of a team of three. The exciting part is that choosing and making our app from scratch is completely up to us! It’s an amazing learning experience to actually harness our skills and creativity and implement a functioning product on our own in addition to receiving mentorship from a Facebook engineer. The program is also geared towards underrepresented groups in the tech industry, and as such, it has been the perfect entry point to the world of technology, especially in helping me find my place in it.

See more student selfies on the Harvard College Admissions Student Blog in part 1, part 2, and part 3.

A series of profiles showcases some of Harvard University’s stellar graduates

Saheela Ibraheem

Ibraheem arrived at Harvard at 16, graduates at 20

Saheela Ibraheem was accepted to Harvard College at age 15, and arrived at 16. She took ultra-tough Math 55. She was a teaching fellow for Harvard’s largest class, CS50. She introduced President Barack Obama at a reception in March. Now, she is graduating at just 20.

Read her story ›

Elizabeth Leimkuhler

Leimkuhler’s love of the stage and of biology blended perfectly

The talented actress, who after graduating from Harvard College will head to Broadway, said that her love for the stage and her interest in science complemented each other perfectly during her undergraduate years.

Read her story ›

Afam Nduaguba

Nduaguba, a Nigerian immigrant, worked hard for both family and future

Afam Nduaguba worked two jobs to support his family, toiling days in a pharmacy and nights as a security guard — and sometimes getting beaten up for his trouble. Harvard Medical School was so far removed from his teenage expectations, it wasn’t even a dream.

Read his story ›

Samantha Noh

Noh connected to the distant past during her archaeology digs in Harvard Yard

Graduating senior Samantha Noh spent her undergraduate years looking for buried treasure in Harvard Yard: a sherd of a drinking vessel, a shard of a wine glass, or an embossed brass button — all remnants of Harvard’s Indian College.

Read her story ›

Fadumo Dayib

When she graduates, Dayib plans to run for president of Somalia

Fadumo Dayib was born in Kenya, the daughter of uneducated Somali parents. Her father, a truck driver, and her mother, a “nomad,” had left Somalia to start their new life together in neighboring Kenya.

Read her story ›

Michael Mancinelli

Mancinelli found a place where here football met astrophysics

Michael Mancinelli not only excelled on Harvard’s varsity football team, his last two seasons as starting left guard, he was Academic All-Ivy as an electrical engineering concentrator with a secondary in astrophysics.

Read his story ›

These excerpts are from a series of profiles showcasing some of Harvard University’s stellar graduates. Read our full Commencement coverage in the Harvard Gazette.

The conversations range from the indispensable guidance of early mentors, to useful mistakes, to career turning-points, sometimes making contact with wider cultural and political forces, such as barriers of race and gender. Animating them as a whole is an exemplary commitment to teaching and scholarship and a passion for lifelong learning.

Professor Stephen Greenblatt

‘So that represented my own little rebellion’

Professor Stephen Greenblatt is one of the most dazzling storytellers of his generation, making the magic of centuries-old literature come alive for modern audiences.
Read interview ›

Professor Melissa Franklin

‘Physics was paradise’

Professor Melissa Franklin, an experimental particle physicist, has had a career of firsts — some scientific, some social.
Read interview ›

Professor Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot

‘I have always been temperamentally wired to carry on’

Professor Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot has found inspiration in the lives of her parents to push herself to illuminate the cultural dynamics behind good schools, good teachers, and good learning environments.
Read interview ›

Dean Martha Minow

‘My life was going to have to deal with issues of social injustice’

For Dean Martha Minow of the Law School, early encounters with issues around public service and civic activism were formative in her pursuits as a scholar.
Read interview ›

Professor E.O. Wilson

‘Search until you find a passion and go all out to excel in its expression’

Professor E.O. Wilson stands as a giant of science for his groundbreaking insights as a theorist and biologist, and for a literary gift that has helped those insights reach a wider audience.
Read interview ›

Professor Steven Pinker

‘What could be more interesting than how the mind works?’

A cognitive scientist and experimental psychologist, Professor Steven Pinker is fascinated by language, behavior, and the mechanics of human nature. Read interview ›

Professor Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

‘I had the advantage of disadvantage’

Professor Laurel Thatcher Ulrich’s first scholarly paper included a line that not only marked her for later fame, but serves as an expression of her own story: “Well-behaved women seldom make history.”
Read interview ›