
James Lasker
Science Associate
James Lasker is a Science Associate in the Astrophysics Institute at Schmidt Sciences working to identify and support projects which can produce unique contributions to the software and hardware infrastructure required for modern astrophysics experiments to succeed.
Prior to joining Schmidt Sciences, James had been a postdoctoral researcher at Southern Methodist University (SMU) where he worked on several projects helping the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) measure galaxy clustering and galaxy formation. This included over 50 nights as a lead observer on the Mayall telescope for the DESI survey. As a Graduate Student at the University of Chicago, James worked on the photometric calibration of the DES Supernova Survey (DES-SN) including the application of SED-based corrections to DES-SN photometry.
James obtained a Ph.D. in Astronomy and Astrophysics from the University of Chicago, an M.S. in Physics from the University of Pennsylvania, and a B.A. with dual majors in Physics and Biochemistry from the University of Pennsylvania.