MY (ILLUSTRATED) LIFE:

I was born to parents David and Leslie McCowan and raised in Sheffield Lake, Ohio (west of Cleveland) with my brother Matthew and sister Melanie.

Dad and Mom	Matthew and Melanie

I attended Brookside High School where I was involved in Marching Band (I played sousaphone), Wind Ensemble (tuba), and the Academic Challenge Club (paper and pencil). It was through band that I met my girlfriend Jess who played flute, about as far from tuba as you can get.

Jess	A Sousaphone

My music career ended my senior year (I wasn't that good anyway), but my interest in math and science led me to major in physics at the Honors Tutorial College of Ohio University in Athens, Ohio . In my four years there I was involved with the Society of Physics Students (president my senior year), did mathematics and science outreach at local elementary schools, and completed a thesis project on the continuous wavelet transform. I also minored in mathematics and Spanish; I'm still fluent in math, but the Spanish has suffered greatly from lack of use.

Hobnobbing with Dean Oggles	An example of the "wonderful" repair work my Athens landlord often did

I am now a student at the University of Chicago and am pursuing a PhD in physics. I live in Hyde Park which is an interesting little neighborhood on the south side of Chicago with a 2:1 barber shop to person ratio and such fine establishments as Ribs "n" Bibs, Pepe's Wonderful Mexican Food, Harold's Chicken Shack Ribs and Fish, and Dixie's Kitchen and Bait Shop.

I recently proposed to Jess on a surprise trip home from Chicago. She was ecstatic (she said yes, of course) and has already subscribed to a half dozen bridal magazines even though we plan to wait a few years for the wedding. She is continuing to work toward a bachelor's degree in education (grades 4-9, English/social studies) from Ashland University in Ohio. Living apart is tough, but we've managed our long distance relationship for about five of the last nearly seven years; while it's far from ideal, we've made it work. Once she completes her degree, she plans to join me in Chicago until I complete my dissertation work.

Jess flashin' her new rocks.	A close-up of the engagement ring.

 

HOBBIES:

NUMISMATICS (Coin Collecting)

I have collected coins for essentially as long as I can remember. I specialize in US coinage with complete date and mint-mark collections of Franklin halves (gem uncirculated), Roosevelt dimes (uncirculated and proof), Sacagewea dollars (uncirculated and gem proof), American silver eagles (uncirculated), and Jefferson nickels (circulated). I am currently working on completing my collections of Lincoln cents (uncirculated and proof), Franklin halves (high-end proof), and peace dollars (gem uncirculated).

A nice Franklin proof half dollar	The 20th Anniversary American Eagle set

Besides my collections, I also have a number of "type" US coins as well as a few foreign and ancient coins. I'm always looking to expand (at least as much as my paltry grad student salary will allow).

Awww. These Chinese panda coins are so cute!

 

MOVIES, TV, and MUSIC

I have no acting or singing talent, so this really should be watching movies/tv and listening to music for anyone who is confused.

I'm pretty open. I like drama, comedy, action in my movies and pretty much the same in my TV. A good story, though, is what really drives me. My favorite movies include Seven, Shawshank Redemption, 12 Monkeys, Office Space, and Crash. Also, to seem intellectual, I need to list some great foreign films like City of God, Lives of Others and Pan's Labyrinth. On TV, I love MacGyver, Due South, Firefly, House, Hustle, Invader Zim, The IT Crowd, and Carnivale.

The movie Seven	The cast of The IT Crowd

In music, my taste leans mostly toward rock with some more eclectic bits thrown in. Favorites in the former category include A Perfect Circle, Rammstein, Fear Factory, KMFDM, Flogging Molly, and Gravity Kills as well as classic acts like Yes, Queen, Crosby, Stills & Nash, and Pink Floyd. As for the eclectic bits, I love electronica and chill from folks like Orbital, Massive Attack, Groove Armada, and Fatboy Slim and nothing beats acoustic guitar genius Andy McKee. A great act I recently discovered is Tettix (formerly known as Cicada) who has music ranging from video game soundtracks to a cappella covers to witty and soulful pop. The best part of all? You can get his entire catalog for free at www.tettix.net.

I hate punk. If you like punk, I don't think we can be friends. :(

Andy McKee's magnum opus	A classic from KMFDM

 

BOOKS

Actually, I'm illiterate. Thanks for bringing it up, Jerk!

No, just kidding. I love to read when physics isn't consuming my life.

Classic literature is, well classic. I'm obsessed with Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy (Inferno, Purgatorio and Paradiso). The story just kicks. Dante ain't afraid to write about his enemies (there's plenty of Pope-bashing and at least one instance of a man gnawing on another man's head) and the allegory is deep. I love symbolism and this work is quite simply the archetype. Man, I love it! There's a lot of other great stuff out there too like Bram Stoker's Dracula, all of Edgar Allen Poe's works and the short stories of Robert Lewis Stevenson.

In more contemporary literature, I've fallen in love with the works of Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, the mammoth tome Aztec by Gary Jennings, and especially the horror writings of H. P. Lovecraft from the 1920's and 30's. Lovecraft's eerie short stories are so bizarre and the writing is delightfully descriptive and imaginative. I suspect most would find him an acquired taste, but countless modern horror authors cite him as an influence (and rightfully so). Anyone interested in a primer can check out his most famous work, The Call of Cthulhu, which spawned an entire mythos of his own and other's creation.

Dante and His Poem (1465), Domenico di Michelino	Cthulhu for President!

 

OLD-SCHOOL VIDEO GAMES

Perhaps an amalgamation of my affinities for history and for technology, I have a lot of love for older video games. I still own and play an 8-Bit Nintendo Entertainment System and a Nintendo 64 (and have the shirt to prove it) and I can recount a good deal of the rich history of the (now essentially defunct) adventure game genre. I read the Myst books (did you even know they made Myst books?!) and still keep copies of my old DOS and Windows 95 games that don't run anymore. I even once owned an Amiga computer. That's hardcore.

On computer I rock the Gabriel Knight Trilogy, Theme Hospital, Grim Fandango, Lemmings and Chex Quest (look it up on Wikipedia). On NES it's the Super Mario Bros. Pantheon (1, 2, 3, Classic, Dr. Mario, etc.), Bubble Bobble, The Legend of Zelda, Paperboy, and Solstice. On N64, it's The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, and Goldeneye 007.

Manny Calavera in Grim Fandango	Shadax in Solstice