From academic pursuits to watching TV, Justin Au (12) strives to observe. Rather than trying to be in the spotlight, he sits back, smiles and watches, just paying attention to the small details and letting his curiosity run free.

“When I watch a kind of strange TV show, it’s kind of like I don’t want to know what’s actually behind everything, but then at the same time there’s this strange, ‘You must figure out what it is, or you will be forever trapped!’” Justin said. “It’s kind of like when you’re putting together a jigsaw puzzle: if you find something that you think is kind of unnecessary or insignificant, it actually might be of use later. You’re definitely not going to find the answers to all the questions you ever ask, but you have to be inquisitive and just pay attention to the things you think are important.”

Academically, Justin’s curiosity found its calling in psychology and biology, interests that began in his fifth grade biology class. With more and more related courses, his interest culminated in conducting his own research this year, taking inspiration from well-known psychological experiments from the past like Albert Bandura’s Bobo doll experiment.

“I especially like psychology for the creative experiments people have done,” Justin said. “I find [Albert Bandura] interesting because he did one particular experiment that involved this imitating behaviors of others just by observation. It was called the Bobo doll experiment, like the punching bag thing. I found it fascinating to learn about how people interact in the world.”

Justin’s drive to observe, coupled with his inherently thorough nature, led him to succeed in biology and psychology but also other sciences courses he took.

“When [Justin] took chemistry, his work stood out among three classes,” chemistry teacher Dr. Casso said. “If I didn’t see his name on it, I could still tell it was his because it was so outstanding. [He] just stands out as someone fantastic and someone special, as a student and as a person.”

While most would only peg Justin as more scientifically minded, he also doubles as an avid writer: he finds a channel to unleash his creativity in writing short stories.

“The topic [of the story] is kind of arbitrary. It’s kind of whatever I’m feeling in the moment. It’s more of a way to channel like my energy, sometimes,” Justin said. “I usually like to write about mysteries, or puzzling events that occur.

Apart from academics, Justin enjoys playing the flute in orchestra, which he began at the Harker lower school, for the sheer thrill of playing but also what he describes as a strange sense of accomplishment through the music.

“Say there’s a piece that you hear from a major orchestra, and then it’s a piece that strikes in you in such a way that it’s very impressive,” he said. “And then one day, you actually play the piece yourself, and what I find is that it may seem impossible or just kind of strange at first. But then after playing it a couple of times, it becomes kind of natural, and that’s what I think I like music for that reason. It’s partially just playing music, but also being able to achieve greater things, eventually.”

Nastya Grebin (12) admires Justin for his general wisdom, but also for his wholehearted mindfulness of others.

“He’s taciturn, he won’t talk too much, but that’s not to say that he’s not sociable. He thinks ahead for other people, so [that’s] a very caring side of his personality. You know, there’s a term “team mom” — almost like that, except between friends,” Nastya said. “Listen carefully to his jokes. They’re actually pretty good.”