Q & A with Suzuka Kokubu ’18

You studied music for many years before deciding to pursue a degree in physics. Why make that switch? 

My earlier life was centered around music. Then, I randomly picked up a book on astrophysics in high school, and I thought it was really cool that people were studying space and the universe. When I told my mom that I wanted to study physics, she said no, that it was not an option, and I needed to go to music school. However, on my own initiative, I studied physics and English every day before applying to universities. I was fortunate to find a liberal arts college where I could pursue all my interests while continuing my music studies. I’d never done such intense studying before, and it was really fun. I thought I wanted to study astrophysics, but I tried one class at Columbia, and it was so much work, I was like, no, never mind.  

How did you find Washington College?  

I used an agency specializing in studying abroad with connections to colleges in the United States; one of them was Washington College. I got offers from a few colleges, but thought Washington College was the best one, and the location was close to Washington, D.C., and New York. In Chestertown, I couldn’t find any Japanese food, and I really missed it, so it was nice to be able to go to Washington, D.C., on weekends.

What was it like studying in the United States?

Washington College was my first experience living outside of Japan, and my English was poor—I couldn’t understand a single conversation when I arrived. Communication was my greatest difficulty during that first year. I didn’t understand any of the social cues, and facial expressions were so different. Also, the concepts people talked about were so different. Luckily for me, in a small college community, the professors were very understanding. This experience broke down cultural and language barriers for me and taught me that we are all humans and are all the same.  

Did you intend to pursue the dual degree partnership with Columbia when you decided to attend Washington? 

My goal was to stay at Washington College for two years and then go to a bigger university. A physics professor told me that if I stayed here one more year, there was an option to go to Columbia. So I ended up doing that. 

Music and physics seem like two very different fields to pursue. Is there a connection between them for you? 

Music, to me, is a raw and more fundamental way of expressing myself. Sound can convey messages and feelings more directly than words. Physics is a way of understanding and questioning the world. I like how physics leaves room for questions or different hypotheses, even for something as fundamental as time. I love music for my creative side and physics for my logical side. 

You need creativity to start a business. You have to ask yourself what matters, what’s really important, and what kind of world you want to make. That’s all creativity. But you need the logical side to execute those things. 

After earning your bachelor’s degrees, did you go straight to graduate school?  

I went back to Japan and started working for IBM. Then I took a leave of absence to begin a master’s in music technology at McGill University but returned to work at IBM while finishing my degree. In 2023, I left IBM and started freelancing as well as starting my own business.

Can you tell me about your current work?  

I’m building my own well-being business. There are so many people struggling and under stress in Japan, and I wanted to do something about it. In the United States, people seek help and talk about their issues. Here, they just keep them inside and don’t talk about them. I am looking for a way to detect those people without going directly through the companies they work for so they don’t feel uncomfortable answering questions honestly. I want to help them, ask them how they’re doing, and provide counseling. That’s my concept, now I need to come up with a good business model to fund it.

I also work as a researcher at the neuropsychiatry lab at Keio University, where I explore stress levels and well-being through biomarkers. For example, we have a project that measures heartbeats in healthy people and people with depression and compares the data. I’m really interested in biological signals, like brainwaves or anything related to a person’s psychological state or stress levels. We’re also doing well-being surveys and research for large corporations. I am primarily focused on the first project, working on analyzing the sensor data. 

Plus, I am a freelancer, participating in various projects such as data science, system development, and IT consulting.

Do you keep in touch with anyone from the College?   

We have a Washington College alumni group on Facebook and have dinners together sometimes. We had a dinner with Professor Andrew Oros and other alumni earlier this year. I was just with two friends from Washington College the other day.

Outside of work, what sorts of interests do you have?

It’s hard to draw a line between work and non-work because they are closely related for me, but I work on music and do my own research. Creating music is something I need to keep doing; without it, I get frustrated and depressed. I also love attending music events.

For my own research, I am trying to understand physiological signals such as brainwaves and how they correlate with things like inspiration. For example, how physiological signals like brainwaves differ between reading from a script and ad-libbing. Unfortunately, my other projects have become busier, and I’ve put this fun project on hold for now. 

A lot of the work you’re doing seems related to mental health generally. How did you get into that space? 

I had strict parents, and when I was younger, I wasn’t confident and struggled. I really want to help people who suffer or struggle similarly. I don’t think I could be a counselor, but maybe indirectly, through my work, I can do something to help.