Aspect recently welcomed Samantha Muchongwe and Ashley Provow to our Seattle office. Here are Five Questions we asked to get to know them better.
Staff Engineer Samantha Muchongwe
Sam out kayaking on South Lake Union in Seattle.
1. Where are you from? If you’re not from the Pacific Northwest, what brought you here?
I’m from Mutare, Zimbabwe, and I first came to the United States for my undergraduate degree. Graduate studies at the University of Washington brought me to the Pacific Northwest.
2. What inspired you to pursue geotechnical engineering? What made you curious about it?
My soil mechanics professor, Dr. Glenn Ellis, in college was a very engaged teacher and made learning about soils very exciting. He referred to Karl von Terzarghi and Arthur Casagrande as the grandfathers of geotechnical engineering, with some references to Harry Potter mixed in (I forget which ones), but they were very intriguing and enough to get me interested. His description of the research he conducted at an institute in Japan on earthquake engineering inspired me to seek out geotechnical research opportunities with another professor at the University of Massachusetts. That’s how I got started!
3. What do you like best about your area of expertise? What excites you and keeps you motivated?
I’m excited about making designs for foundations, retaining walls, and other geotechnical applications based off of soil parameters from field and lab analyses. I believe as much as we understand how different kinds of soils and rocks behave, even with local geological expertise, there is still much to learn. The approaches taken to solve geotechnical engineering problems can be drastically different and complicated, and I’m excited for the professional growth and experience that will allow me to tackle such engineering problems with relative ease.
4. What do you like to do when you aren’t working?
I value “me-time” - that usually involves watching foreign TV, reading books, playing tennis, and sometimes hiking. My family and friends are spread out all over the globe, so I usually spend time catching up with them when I have free time.
5. If you could choose to have a superpower, what would it be?
Language mastery! I would like to be fluent in every language on earth and be able to communicate with all beings in their native language.
Staff Scientist Ashley Provow
Ashley at her work-from-home desk.
1. Where are you from? If you’re not from the Pacific Northwest, what brought you here?
I am originally from Davis County, Utah, but moved to the Seattle area from Las Vegas, Nevada, where I was working towards a PhD at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas in planetary geology. After two years in the program, I decided to try something different and began applying for jobs all along the west coast. I fell in love with the Pacific Northwest when I visited in 2017, and was elated to have the chance to move here for work.
2. What inspired you to pursue geology? What made you curious about it?
My first geology course as a freshman in college piqued my interest in the subject, but I did not consider changing my major until I was several semesters into a degree in journalism. After that first geology class, I saw the mountains of the Wasatch Front in a different way and wanted to understand how they formed. I was excited to be able to study a piece of that history during my master’s research at Utah State University.
One of Ashley’s lace shawl knitting projects in progress.
3. What do you like best about your area of expertise? What excites you and keeps you motivated?
I enjoy the variety of projects and methods, which helps keep me interested in the work. The thing that excites and motivates me the most is knowing that what we are doing helps clean the water and soil.
4. What do you like to do when you aren’t working?
Outside of work, I am a bit of a nerd. I like playing video games (usually Star Wars: The Old Republic), consuming science fiction and comic-book content, and listening to history podcasts. I also like to hike, kayak, knit, and collect houseplants. But my number-one favorite thing to do is hang out with my spouse and our three cats: Zuko, Jinora, and Bucky.
5. Where in the world would you like to travel next?
I am honestly looking forward to exploring more of the Pacific Northwest before the fall.