Gilman, who is from Santa Monica, Calif., has drawn on both majors in his interdisciplinary academic and professional work — in the history and philosophy of science and math, digital mapping, spatial data analysis, the environmental humanities and math pedagogy, among other areas. He conducted research at Occidental College’s Moore Lab of Zoology, using photogrammetry to generate 3D digital models of the lab’s bird specimens, and at Columbia’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, using simulated data to study the relationship between sulfate emissions and severe hurricane activity. With BEAM, a tuition-free extracurricular math program for underserved middle-school students, he was a teaching assistant for courses on logic and voting theory.
As a writer and senior editor for The Blue and White, Columbia’s undergraduate magazine, Gilman covered subjects ranging from the dissolution of the Marching Band to the corporate strategy of the ed-tech company Chegg, and founded the publication’s crossword column. He was also active in the classical music scene as a cellist with the Columbia University Orchestra, HybridArts Ensemble, Bach Society and the 126th Annual Varsity Show pit, and as a programmer in WKCR-FM’s classical department. He is currently an intern for n+1, a left-wing political and literary journal based in Brooklyn.
As a Marshall scholar, Gilman will pursue an M.A. in research architecture at Goldsmiths and an M.A. in human rights at Birkbeck, both at the University of London. Both programs of study connect to Forensic Architecture, a London-based research agency that uses digital spatial techniques ordinarily found in architectural practice for open-source humanitarian investigations. In the longer term, he hopes to use this training toward a career in investigative journalism.
Current students and alumni can learn more about the Marshall and other fellowship offerings through the Undergraduate Research and Fellowships office.