There’s a theoretical and observational side to everything – and Bryan Wang’s (12) hobbies are no exception. From being co-president of Programming club to conducting research at University of California at Santa Cruz to playing the saxophone in his band The Jazz Factor, Bryan’s interests revolve around this emotional and mental uncertainty, exploring beyond the bounds of high school and wielding hazardous and unpredictable environments as the sources of the development of mind. 

Uncertainty is an inextricable part of math and science and even music. It’s disorganized. It’s messy. It’s frustrating. But Bryan strives to embrace this notion of “uncertainty,” reflecting upon his actions and growing an introspection for his accomplishments and what he strives for in life. 

By facing this ambiguity, Bryan learned to explore a vast array of studies, trying different activities ranging from astrophysics to jazz. 

“I don’t really see myself fit to one interest. I think navigating through high school, I’ve had to do a lot of thinking on what is my focus, what have I done, what have I achieved, what have I put myself towards. A lot of high school is focused on finding something. Finding a niche,” Bryan said. 

Anthony Silk, the math department chair who taught Bryan in junior year, still frequently converses with him and admires his curiosity and ability to scrutinize a wide range of topics. 

“He’s fascinated by a lot of different things. One of the things that I really like is that you can have conversations that hit on so many different topics. It’s not just STEM. It’s not just the arts. It’s on so many different levels,” Silk said. 

During the summers after his sophomore and junior years, Bryan studied astrophysics at UC Santa Cruz. His research led not only to a deeper understanding of the world but also a fascination with mindfulness, a heightened awareness with his surroundings. 

“I honestly just stumbled into astrophysics. I knew I wanted to kind of explore this applied tech atmosphere into an academic setting to see what that was like. One thing that I picked up … is this fascination for mindfulness. It taught me to appreciate the world that I live in and be grateful for that [and] also pushed me to self reflect more,” Bryan said. 

In addition to self-awareness, astrophysics taught Bryan to appreciate nature and embrace its uncertainty as well. 

“When I was at UC Santa Cruz, one thing that I didn’t really expect was appreciating this love for nature. UC Santa Cruz is such a great campus. I would find myself going on these walks randomly in these forests. And in a way, walking out there was embracing nature’s uncertainty,” he said. 

Rakesh Nori (12), Bryan’s close friend, neighbor and co-president of the Programming club, commends his drive and determination to achieve what he wants. Rakesh has watched him grow as a person, literally and metaphorically speaking. 

“If there’s one thing I know about Bryan it’s that whenever he says he wants to do something you don’t have any doubt that he’ll go out of his way to do it. He’s definitely a really goal oriented person. There’s nothing that really seems too hard for him to accomplish. And that’s definitely inspired me in some way,” Rakesh said.  

Bryan also plays the saxophone in a non-profit organization and band called The Jazz Factor, founded in 2017 by Bryan and a couple of his friends. He started playing the saxophone in sixth grade before joining Harker’s jazz band when he moved to Harker in eighth grade. Katelyn Chen (12), the vocalist of the band, appreciates his humility and dedication to what he does. 

“He’s a very driven person. He knows what he wants in life and he’s very hard working. But he also makes it seem effortless. He’s the type of person who you know is really intelligent but he doesn’t make other people feel less intelligent,” Katelyn said.

Through his explorations, Bryan discovered the necessity of questioning his actions, to ask himself what he aims to accomplish and if what he’s doing makes him happy. By “embracing [his] uncertainty” in life, he strives to meet new people and try things he’d never thought he’d do, disregarding his doubts and sallying forth to college and beyond.  

“If you can take the time to isolate yourself from a current time and place and objectively judge yourself [by asking] yourself questions, then you can ultimately be on this constantly pivoting mind where you put yourself forth and you embrace this idea of uncertainty. You find yourself in really rewarding and really fulfilling places where you meet new people and try new things,” Bryan said.