Rise of the Wadjet Witch - By Juliet C. Obodo Page 0,6

and wish him a happy birthday. The nice gesture may move him to sprinkle a bit of last minute sweetener on the letter.

She checked his calendar. He was at Pupin Hall preparing for the stargazing event he was hosting on Friday. Though he had only begun his position as head of the Department of Exoplanetary Science and Astrobiology that semester, he was already a board favorite and loved by the students. He was raised in New Jersey, but acquired a PhD and a slight British accent from Cambridge. With his ability to navigate political academia, he made for the perfect reference.

This fellowship would be her saving grace. Unlike most of her classmates, Memphis didn’t study physics or abstract mathematics; her undergraduate career was spent in biology labs. The ability to map and explain in detail the human nervous system didn’t make for good conversation at a table full of astronomers. The fact that it was the oldest science gave them cause to look down at lowly biologists; stars were much older than stinking humans. That was their attitude until she mentioned her position within the Exoplanetary Science and Astrobiology department. This turned more heads than Blake Lively in skinny jeans. Combining sciences made one a rock star in academia.

Only around 175 American universities offered astronomy as a degree on the undergraduate level, and around sixty offered study on the graduate level, so each university reaped a new crop of graduates, and competition increased for the few faculty and research positions available. A PhD was generally required to work in the field. Only those students with strong undergraduate backgrounds in physics, math, and computer science were usually able to cut it at the graduate level. Close associations with professors during undergraduate and graduate work were vital if one wanted to attain a position in the field. The hours were long, and there was a lot of number crunching and grading papers and tests, but she loved the work and the people she worked with.

Working in the Exoplanetary Science and Astrobiology department gave her a competitive edge, especially because it was run under a beloved and admired faculty member. His research alone brought in several million dollars in grants. Memphis was only happy to ride his coattails, at least until she could get a pair of her own. The research itself was extremely fascinating: discovering and characterizing planets around stars and their formations, histories, and properties; and finding planets that might have life and detecting it. She was responsible for making sure the other students knew the detection methods and properties of known exoplanets. They used gravitational microlensing to find the extrasolar planets. She and Jonathan recently published a paper on the formation and evolution of terrestrial planets in protoplanetary and debris disks.

She was now focusing on the constellations and the formation and habitability of extra solar planets in multiple star systems, exploring exoplanet habitats, and looking for life signs and if the life on the exoplanets was as affected by their moons as humans were on Earth.

Though fellow aspiring astronomers were grudgingly impressed by her work, laymen were simply blown away whenever she discussed her research, especially at bars. Her Orphan Annie/Mistress of the Universe vibe seemed to appeal to men.

Memphis grew up in foster care; her parents abandoned her at the age of six. She never knew why. Her foster mother often said it was because of her “ugly mug,” so Memphis stopped looking in the mirror and began looking into books instead. She became a star student and received a full scholarship to NYU, and now she might be able to benefit financially at Columbia. Any parent would be proud of a child like her; too bad she had none. But what she lacked in family, she made up for in admirers—though she was completely oblivious to the attention and often went home alone.

She had no idea that she fascinated them. She was smart and beautiful. Once they discovered her profession, they were hooked. They would ask her numerous questions, most of which were inane but some were insightful. She would spend most of her time telling them what astronomers didn’t do versus what they did: astronomers did not identify UFOs; they had not seen God; and no, sorry, no Martians as Facebook friends.

With each question, her dating pool dwindled, which was another reason she fell into bed with her professor. He was smart, handsome, and never looked at her like she was a charity case. He saw her