Biography
James Parkes is a Physics PhD student at the University of California, Berkeley. James has been a member of the HuMNet Lab since the summer of 2020. James is passionate about the world and wants his research to make a positive impact on society. It was this desire that ultimately led James to transition away from Theoretical Cosmology Research and to join the HuMNet Lab. James’s research centers on attempting to understand how complex networks react when subjected to multiple outside pressures. With this in mind, James is currently pursuing a variety of specific research projects including analyzing how human mobility is impacted by natural disasters and investigating how congestion propagates through road networks in high traffic flow scenarios. Outside of academia, some of James’s favorite activities are hiking and camping. Not only are they relaxing, but he also finds that they help keep the world in perspective and his mind open to any and all possibilities. He also really enjoys relaxing with a nice cup of coffee.