I am currently a postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.  Thanks to the Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics (CITA) for still hosting this site.

    I like using physics (with some help from computers) to figure out how planets form and how they work.  On a good day I can say something about breathtaking exoplanet discoveries.

    If you didn’t notice the links at left, my CV is Youdin_CV.pdf, and my scientific papers can be found here.  I was previously employed as a postdoc and lecturer in the Dept. of Astrophysical Sciences at Princeton University.  I was lucky to be the astronomer-in-residence for an astrobiology field trip to Yellowtone National Park!  Twice!!

    I earned my PhD from the UC Berkeley Physics Dept., completing a thesis on planetesimal formation with (then) Berkeley Astronomy Professor Frank Shu.  I earned undergradute degrees in Physics (Summa Cum Laude) and French (let’s hear it for the liberal arts) from Amherst College.  My thesis on “Axions and Spin-Mass Coupling” (wow, that was different from planets!) was a finalist for the APS Apker Award.

    For the kids: Astrophysics, like math, is hard.  But you get to interact with smart and interesting (and frankly, odd) people, sometimes in exotic locations.  In March 2006 I was in Egypt to see a fabulous total solar eclipse.  I was the invited banquet speaker for the Frontiers of Astronomy School at the Alexandria Library.  Please contact me if you need an astronomer for your eclipse expedition!

    When I’m not pondering the heavens, my hobbies include rock climbing, snowboarding and vermiculture (my worm farm, great for apartments).