InternViews #10: Aubert Saragi

InternViews is our weekly series where RIGI interns share their experiences, insights, and stories from their time in Stuttgart.

Aubert Saragi is a bachelor’s student in Aerospace Engineering at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.

This week, we meet Aubert Saragi, whose RIGI project brought together robotics and biology, building on earlier experience with cell culture, 3D bioprinting, and soft materials. Outside the lab, Aubert enjoys playing the piano and could often be found at the piano near the institute’s supply store after work.

What inspired you to pursue studies/a career in your field?
I loved airplanes since I was a kid, so growing up I wanted to work in the aviation sector. Somewhere in the first two years of my university journey, I started liking biology, and things related to bioengineering. A year-long research attachment project introduced me to cell culture and work related to 3D bioprinting, as well as soft materials in general. This led me to my RIGI project, which combines robotics and biology, a multidisciplinary project which is very interesting in my opinion.

What’s one surprising or unexpected thing you learned during your internship?
I learnt that walking between the three labs allowed me to easily clock 10k steps a day!

RIGI interns having an after-work potluck dinner together

What was your favorite part of the RIGI program?
RIGI events and interactions with other interns, learning about their projects!

What do you like to do when you’re not researching, studying, or working?
I play the piano during my free time! After a long day at work, I was usually found at the piano near the supply store :)

Do you have a favorite memory from your time in Stuttgart?
After work, some interns and I would usually gather at the guesthouse's kitchen to cook and have dinner together. In these times we share how our day had been, exchange stories and try one another's cooking.

A scene from the lab Aubert spent most of his internship at

Which inanimate tool or piece of equipment you used in the lab would be the WORST roommate if it were human, and why?
Felix Bioprinter. What do you mean you cannot adjust between cooling and heating when you have the ambient temperature and set temperature values ?!? It is like a person turning the heater on in the middle of the heatwave.

What’s next for you after RIGI?
Finish my bachelor's degree!

Any advice for future RIGI interns?
Enjoy your time in Stuttgart! Make new friends, learn new things and travel around when you have time!

People

Birgül Akolpoglu

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Aubert Saragi

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