Javier F. Castaño
DUNE photon detection system
University of Antonio Nariño, Colombia

My favorite hobby is playing guitar and singing. I sing every Sunday at church, and I like to create new songs and write poetry and short stories. My children also play piano and guitar, my wife plays tambourine and sings, and we try to play together. I love spending time with my family. I am an electronics engineer and professor, and I want to help young people consider choosing a life as a scientist or as an engineer working on big projects like DUNE or ATLAS, because in Latin America, we need more scientists and more science education. It’s the only way to develop our countries. I work on digital systems and FPGA design, and am involved with the photon detection system group working on the development of DAPHNE, an electronics board. I like technology – not only using it, but also understanding how it works and is designed. It’s very nice when you design electronics by yourself and you spend a lot of time working on it, and you finally see it working. It’s a little similar to having a child.