Oscar Barrera

Hi, I’m Oscar,

a PhD student in theoretical physics at Harvard University. My work lives at the intersection of high-energy theory and machine learning, where I blend analytical insight with numerical tools to explore some of the most fundamental questions about the universe.

I’m currently working with Lisa Randall to numerically constrain flavor-violating processes in five-dimensional Randall–Sundrum models, and with Matt Schwartz to develop efficient algorithms for evaluating Feynman diagrams. In the past, I’ve worked on gravitational wave astrophysics, machine learning for superconductor discovery, and synthetic data generation for financial applications.

Outside the lab, I play guitar and grew up on a mix of ’70s rock, ’90s grunge, and 2000s alt. The Interlude tab has a select list of bands I’ve seen live.

If a stranger were to ask, “Why physics?” you might say something like: “Well, even if it doesn’t always have direct applications, it builds the tools that let us invent the things we once couldn’t even imagine, like GPS, which relies on general relativity.”

But the deeper value of physics is hard to put into words. It shows up in quiet moments, like staring at the ceiling at 3 am, wondering why anything exists at all. For those who’ve felt that weight, the urge to probe the laws of nature becomes less a curiosity and more a need to make sense of existence itself.

If questions about spacetime, consciousness, or the symmetries underlying reality don't move you - spiritually or intellectually - then maybe the question isn’t what the universe hides, but what within us has gone silent enough to no longer ask.