“Curiosity is the foundation for every scientist’s motivation to understand complex problems,” said Chandler Woo, a senior chemistry major at Mississippi State. “Exploring the uncharted and finding answers to a problem that has not been successfully solved is what excites me about research in general.”

Internationally-acclaimed Nigerian poet, playwright and author Chigozie Obioma will visit Mississippi State University as the Writer-in-Residence next month, bringing his in-depth wisdom of African literature—shaped by his Igbo heritage and Nigerian upbringing––to explore themes of fate, family and the clash between tradition and modernity with the MSU community.

“I realized there are so many types of writing—you can write for a magazine, for essays, for news stories,” said Portia Agyapong, reflecting on her internship in Mississippi State’s College of Arts and Sciences Dean’s Office last summer. “Even though I initially struggled because I was stuck with an academic writing mindset, it was an amazing experience to learn different ways of writing during my internship. I really learned a lot from it.”