Class Notes: 2008
Jordan Berk ’08 just published his debut sci-fi novel, The Timestream Verdict, in September. It is a love letter to time travel fiction, and centers on a trial for the first-ever case of “temporal homicide,” time-travel murder, and the jury pulled in from across the modern timestream that must reach a critical verdict. The victim is a Berkeley physics professor, colloquially known as “the mother of time travel.” Naturally, a good portion of the story takes place in and celebrates the author’s beloved Berkeley. The Timestream Verdict is available everywhere now. https://linktr.ee/jordanberkauthor
Jessica (Jex) Huang (B.S. ’08) is climbing the world’s highest volcano (elevation 22,615′) above sea level to raise funds and awareness for the non-profit Range of Motion Project, after receiving corrective surgery and regaining mobility from their own range of motion disability. All alumni are welcome to follow along as they try to enable more people in becoming more mobile and enjoying the outdoors: https://give.rompglobal.org/jmoves4accessiblenature
Michael D. Thomas of nationwide employment law firm Jackson Lewis P.C. has been named a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Accessibility Visionary by the Los Angeles Times. The publication highlighted prominent thought leaders in the California business community who prioritize diversity, equity and inclusion policies within their respective sectors. Michael is a principal in the firm’s Orange County, California office where he focuses his practice on representing employers on various employment law and corporate diversity matters.
Jessica Castillo Vardaro, assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at San José State University, won the Animal Welfare Institute’s Christine Stevens Wildlife Award in 2021. She is assessing the American pika population’s vulnerability to various threats, including climate change and livestock grazing, through genetic analysis of their fecal pellets. She received a bachelor’s in conservation and resource studies from Cal.
