r/AMA • u/regularjig • 14h ago
Job I’m a 28 year old physicist in a leadership position in a large space and defense manufacturing company; AMA
As the title says. I’m a 28 year old physicist, working as the lead engineer for a large space and defense manufacturing company. Part of my job is to work directly with all engineering team heads, doing project engineering, project management, and systems engineering. AMA
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u/StoicMori 9h ago edited 6h ago
For future record, this guy is lying and is definitely not who/what he says he is.
Edit:
OP personally messaged me and provided more context. It's not concrete but things do match his story. A lot of the clearance related things I noticed can likely be attributed to time spent in the field. Either way that's just an excuse and I owe OP an apology and a pat on the back for over achieving.
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u/Exotic_Wasabi4201 9h ago
Why do you say that?
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u/regularjig 8h ago
They’re extrapolating from personal experiences. Even though I don’t blame them, since I get imposter syndrome in my job myself, but their tone hasn’t been nice! I have offered to provide proof but they haven’t accepted!
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u/Exotic_Wasabi4201 8h ago
Ah okay. Yeah I get the imposter syndrome stuff too. Kind of weird if we all don't struggle with this at times.
Thanks for the AMA. Sounds like you have a really interesting job.
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u/regularjig 8h ago
Absolutely, I even provided a verification method to them, you can see it in my reply to their comment. I’m extremely grateful for my job, and to my manager who took a leap of faith for me. Thank you kind stranger and good luck!
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u/StoicMori 8h ago
The way they speak of clearances and classified information is sloppy. I've never heard anyone versed on the topic speak of it the way they have.
Their experience level and claimed job title is also not very convincing. Especially for a large defense company dealing primarily with militaries.
The OP seems to be purposely obfuscating things as well. It's almost like they are telling half truths.
It's not impossible that they have a job in a defense company with a clearance. But something about their posts and replies is just throwing red flags.
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u/regularjig 9h ago edited 9h ago
For future records, I have offered to have a video call with this person to provide proof. As of writing this they haven’t responded to that offer.
Edit: here is my proposal:
“I’m happy to provide proof if you can somehow guarantee my information won’t be used elsewhere. Here’s an idea: Send me a meeting link in my direct chat, then we can set up a video call, you show me your ID and send an email to my burner email address with your company email. Then I’ll respond with my company email to your company email. How’s that sound? Happy to do that if you’d be willing.”
I think moderators might have ways for confirming people’s claims too which I’d be happy to engage with.
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u/arnathor 14h ago
How easy is it to become part of your industry and do you have a lot of transfers in from other industries?
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u/regularjig 14h ago
It can be tough. Considering security clearances and required technical aptitude, especially. But intra transfers are very common. We have people coming in from various industries.
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u/rkhan7862 14h ago
total comp?
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u/regularjig 14h ago
I’m at the lower end of the range for this because of my relative young age and lack of extensive experience. 120k + very good benefits.
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u/Lost-Village-1048 14h ago
How long until physicists are replaced by AI Bots?
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u/regularjig 14h ago
I think it’ll be one of the last fortresses to fall, but at very senior level, I don’t think anytime soon (I hope!)
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u/jonathananeurysm 14h ago
Defense? To the best of your knowledge do you provide material assistance for any ongoing genocide?
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u/physics_fighter 14h ago
lol Can you get me a job? I have an MS in physics with about 9 years experience as an engineer, with 6 of those as a radar engineer for a military contractor!
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u/montemason 14h ago
What do you and your fellow physicists do for fun after work? Do y'all get beers together or karaoke or shoot pool?
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u/regularjig 13h ago
I’m the only physicist in the company, and my physicist friends are all over the world. I personally have been trying to get out more recently. I enjoy concerts, beaches, and I’m ashamed to admit, doom scrolling. Hoping to try more new hobbies like snowboarding this winter.
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u/Ldawg03 13h ago
I know you can’t comment on any matters relating to national security of course but do you or anyone else in the company hold a Top Secret/SCI clearance? I’m genuinely curious and I promise I’m not a CCP spy
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u/regularjig 13h ago
I’m not going to disclose my clearances, but there are people in the company that have cosmic top secret clearances.
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u/Cranberry-Electrical 13h ago
What is your favorite book on physics?
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u/regularjig 13h ago
Seriously Jackson haha. I love E&M. I like building mental models of the physics I study and E&M has been great for that. Maybe that’s why I never got good grades in Quantum physics courses. I know you’re probably looking for a science communication style of book for an answer though. Being in physics I never really read physics science communication books, but I enjoy lectures and conferences on it. Nima Arkani Hamed’s lectures and Brian Greens’s World Science Festival are some of my favorites.
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u/WumberMdPhd 13h ago
Is high6, low 7 figure startup enough to get contracts and break even in things like advanced manufacturing, materials science, some EE or ME systems or is the field dominated by big players?
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u/regularjig 12h ago
Breaking in is definitely possible. But, that depends on what you mean by breaking in. If you’re thinking about bidding on major government projects it’s going to be extremely challenging (but not impossible). But breaking in as being a sub contractor for a major contractor would be great path forward to get your name out there.
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u/Cranberry-Electrical 13h ago
What is the best way to learn mathematics? I had a hard time mastering calculus.
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u/regularjig 12h ago
I’ve never had stellar math skills like some of my peers either. As I’ve grown I’ve realized different people have different learning styles. I personally need to be able to make a mental image of what I’m doing on paper, and once I get those neurons connected then I learn the formulas and what not better. I’d say figure out what type of brain you have for learning and design your study sessions to meet that. If you have photographic memory, it’ll need a different type of studying if you have a model based brain like mine.
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u/Fast_Answer_1813 12h ago
Are aliens and/or “dark physics” are real thing?
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u/regularjig 12h ago
Aliens, purely based on probability should be real, but I don’t personally know any :D What do you mean by dark physics?
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u/Fast_Answer_1813 12h ago
Physics that aren’t taught and only known to a few
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u/regularjig 12h ago
I mean how to make a nuclear bomb seems to fit that description so yes. But if you meant some esoteric physics like anti gravity and what not, I don’t know the answer to that question.
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u/Sanchez_U-SOB 12h ago
Do you think interstellar travel is possible?
Also, what othet areas of physics/science do you find fascinating?
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u/regularjig 12h ago
Is it possible? Absolutely. If physics allows it then it is possible. Can we do it right now with humans on board? No we lack the technology for that. Electromagnetism, Plasma Physics, and Quantum Physics have always been fascinating for me, even though I never got good grades in QM.
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u/bactiarry86 12h ago
Did you get clearance from the company to do this ama?
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u/regularjig 12h ago
No, but I’m not disclosing any confidential information.
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u/bactiarry86 12h ago
Is everything very compartmentalized in your company?
Since you've been working there, did you have a few jaw dropping moments of things you saw or witnessed?
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u/regularjig 12h ago
We stick to the highest levels of security. Any confidential document that is to be read, only is read in a specific EM shielded room with special access keys and no mobile devices allowed inside. I’ve had two instances of super cool and mind blowing things come my way through. But not at the detailed level that requires you to go to that special room. Only on the superficial level given to me by my manager verbally, without any confidential/classified info attached to that conversation.
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u/bactiarry86 11h ago
Has your outlook on life changed a lot since you've been working there?
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u/regularjig 11h ago
Not my mission in life. But my way of life has changed a little. Even though in my ideal world I would sit down with pen and papers and study cosmology, I’ve realized that if I want to contribute to humanity’s pathway to stars, the world I live in requires me also have capitalist glasses on. So I have to have monetary considerations if I want to achieve my life mission. So that’s new.
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u/Slimybirch 11h ago
What were the mind-blowing things you were told? If you can share of course. Or did you sign some sort of NDA to prevent sharing of information, even that of conversations had?
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u/bactiarry86 12h ago
What is your opinion on string theory and the simulation theory?
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u/regularjig 11h ago
String theory I can hear both sides of the conversation and the rift between physicists. I understand some frustration from non string theorist about recent hyper focusing on string theory. On the other hand, I can’t deny the theoretical successes of the string theory.
I like Leonard Susskind a lot, so I’m a fan of the holographic/simulation theory at the surface level. I haven’t studied it in depth so I can’t give an expert opinion, but my understanding of cosmology so far has given me the impression that we might be living in a simulation (if there’s a creator, it’s the entity running the program). If there’s no creator them simulation doesn’t make much sense.
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u/bactiarry86 11h ago
Do you ever feel lonely because you can't share certain information with others?
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u/regularjig 11h ago
I do. Sometimes I come across a really fascinating proposal with some brilliant idea from someone, that I would’ve loved to share with people who like tech/science, but no can do unfortunately.
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u/bactiarry86 11h ago
Hypothetically speaking. If you were to meet a person with the same security clearance as yourself,, but you two are not work related,, you just met on vacation and stumbled on the topic by accident. Are you then allowed to talk with that person about the projects you worked on?
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u/regularjig 11h ago
Not technically. The security clearances are exclusive to each company. So if someone has a secret clearance in company X, it can’t share confidential information to a person with the same security clearance in company Y. This even applies to intra company policies. Our US/Canada/Europe/Australia/Asia offices don’t speak to each other unless authorized with the proper paperwork.
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u/bactiarry86 11h ago
Do you think that free will exists?
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u/regularjig 11h ago
I think free will exists as an emergent phenomenon from quantum physics level events in our brains. I have no proof though, it’s just an educated guess :D
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u/bactiarry86 11h ago
Did you ever meet someone that was so smart that even you couldn't follow him/her in topics you thought you were well versed in?
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u/regularjig 11h ago
I don’t think I’m smart really. There are things that I’m completely useless in haha. But yes, both directly and indirectly. The sign of that has always been this for me: I listen to them talk about something, my brain says wait wtf did they just say?, I spend hours deciphering what they said, and if I successfully wrap my head around that I literally get a serotonin/adrenaline rush and chills, like holy shit that’s what he was talking about!
Some of the past experiences have been the “anti matter is matter moving backwards in time analogy”, selfish gene theory, and Steven Weinberg’s takes on cosmology/GR/QM.
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u/bactiarry86 10h ago
Do you use things like chatgpt to help you out? Or do they maybe use a different kind of ai in these kind of companies?
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u/regularjig 10h ago
Our company requires us to not share company information with publicly available chatbots. Instead we have special licenses for some AI chatbots that require them to not record or use our chats for the AI’s training purposes, or any other purpose really. I use our designated AI chatbots for things that include company information, but if I’m just looking for a line of code to make x do y, then I sometimes use public chatbots that are better than ours too (since the latest versions first go public).
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u/bactiarry86 10h ago
Where do you think ai will go in the upcoming years?
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u/regularjig 10h ago
I think it’ll take over many jobs and the world order needs to figure out how to handle that. IMO if your work is replaced by AI you should still receive compensation either from the company or the government.
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u/bactiarry86 10h ago
Do you enjoy the sense of humor of the people you deal with in your line of work?
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u/regularjig 10h ago
We have an extremely diverse group, in terms of age, ethnicity, and humor! You kinda bounce off jokes from people until you find your people. This pretty much is no different than any other company. But people immediate to my have a great sense of humor and are very easy going!
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u/bactiarry86 10h ago
That's so nice to have for basic happiness at the job
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u/regularjig 10h ago
Indeed. It seems like the more experienced and knowledgeable people are the ones with their head not up their ass. Our director of engineering is extremely laid back and has jokes!
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u/inphinities 10h ago
Your opinion on the double slit experiment? That is the main thing I know and am interested in about physics.
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u/regularjig 10h ago
I’m not coming from an expertise in Quantum physics, but I think it’s an overly sensationalized topic. It indeed is a fascinating phenomenon, but some titles like “electrons consciously know you’re watching so they change their behavior!” are overly sensationalized. How and why the wave function collapses is an interesting topic to study, but there isn’t a demon in electrons safeguarding the secrets of the universe as far as physics is concerned!
That being said, there are many interpretations of that phenomenon. I remember reading delayed choice experiment, that’s a cool one!
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u/bactiarry86 10h ago
If you would have a very brief meeting with an alien scientist of a very advanced civilization. Which 5 questions would you ask this alien scientist first?(Assuming you could both understand each other's language)
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u/regularjig 10h ago
That’s an interesting one.
- Is there a creator/god?
- What happens after we die?
- How do we achieve the theory of everything? (I’m assuming this will answer questions like what’s inside a blackhole and details about big bang too since those are some fascinating questions too)
- How does life begin?
- How do we become an ultimate Kardashev tier civilization?
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u/bactiarry86 10h ago
What is your current guess on number 1 and 2?
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u/regularjig 10h ago
- Creator maybe. But no god in the religious sense that is all powerful and all good.
- You experience the same thing that you did before being born (I mean years before being born)
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u/bactiarry86 9h ago
I totally agree on 1. Too much needless suffering going on. There might be more than one architect of this universe. But did they originate from the same source? Or is that a Linear question that involves thinking in terms of time that maybe is not relevant outside of this universe/simulation?
For number 2 I hope at least much more happiness than we experience now and without the hassle of having a physical body to maintain.
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u/ExoatmosphericKill 9h ago
What would you do if you were interested in the same things but weren't able to get a degree?
Thanks.
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u/regularjig 9h ago
Pray and hope (since they are rare) that the people interviewing me are not concerned about my degree and only care about my skills. I personally don’t think a fancy degree must be a requirement for a job. It definitely shows you have some proven knowledge and skills but it doesn’t guarantee success. But on a realistic note, networking with people to show them your skills would be the way. You might have to start at a lower tier of employment but you can certainly build from there. I know people with high school degrees in tech in good positions.
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u/ExoatmosphericKill 9h ago
What aren't you happy about with your life?
How do you deal with anxiety?
Are nuclear thermal rockets ultimately the answer to getting to; leaving orbit?
What year will we mine something outside of our atmosphere specifically for profit?
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u/regularjig 9h ago
I am happy with my life. I had a rough patch a couple of years ago but with medication and counseling I’ve bounced back! Now to maintain that happiness I try to let my happy emotion uncage, and try to fight the back on the bad emotions. I’m still taking a lower dose of anxiety meds though.
The ultimate answer would be something that would give us faster than light travel capabilities haha. But jokes aside, there’s a reason why nuclear propulsion is banned and I see the logic behind it. Unless until we can demonstrate nuclear propulsion to be flawlessly good (maybe by using them in deep space missions) then I’m more in favor not taking the risk with human lives and sticking with chemical propulsion for now.
How can I possibly give you the exact year! But probably 5-10 years after space ride (like spacex’s efforts) become financially feasible for companies to invest in extra atmospheric mining.
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u/tompalatine 7h ago
How much of what you learned in college do you actually use in your job? How much of your time is sitting in front of a computer?
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u/regularjig 7h ago
If we’re talking about formulas and what not, probably %10. But I’d say there’s an emergent nature to studying different topics. It teaches your brain to work in different ways, have different perspectives, which becomes handy at systems level thinking. %80 behind a computer, %20 hands on
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u/um-bong-o 11h ago
At 28. You don't have the required experience for the role. Kudos. Not taking anything from you. But you have had lucky steps which got you to where you are. I'm sure you're good at it.. and keep it up. But others reading this shouldn't feel degraded. Higher positions take experience to achieve.
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u/regularjig 11h ago
Completely agree. I would be lying if I say I didn’t have a huge imposter syndrome when I started. I think our director of engineering took a leap of faith with me.
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u/morgandrew6686 14h ago
what's your iq
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u/regularjig 14h ago
Last test I took put me in the 145-150 range. But IQ is not a as big deal as people make it to be. I’ve met incredibly high IQ individuals that were better than me in IQ metrics by orders of magnitude, but they lacked skills like dedication, commitment, communication, hard work, and in the end they didn’t achieve much (yet at least!)
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u/morgandrew6686 11h ago
yeah i'm aware its not much of an indicator of success generally speaking but was curious. godspeed.
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u/muazzizsarif 14h ago