Shahrazad Sirhan was never passionate about studying – until she took a class with an inspiring Physics teacher who infected her with the physics “bug.”

At 25, with a master degree in physics and a half year old daughter, Shahrzad Sarhan is continuing her studies, working towards a PhD in science education. Amazingly, up until 10th grade, she was considered an average student, and didn’t even particularly liked school.

So what happened in 10th Grade?

In Grade 10 I started learning physics. My teacher was Dahar Adawi from the village of Turan. When we entered the classroom on the day of our very first lesson, he was standing by the window that was facing a sharp drop in the road. A heavily loaded truck/semitrailer was passing by – it was having difficulty driving down the steep road, and he showed and explained to us in physical terms, the situation we were observing. Although I didn’t understand his explanation, his approach left a lasting impression on me – the attempt he made to explain to us the “secret” of how things work in the world – as well as his enthusiasm. On this day I came to the realization that physics is a subject I would like to learn more about.

And you succeeded?

Yes, I studied very hard, and managed to get very high marks – 97% in the 5-point (advanced) physics high-school 12thcourse. In addition, I received a certificate of excellence from the Ministry of Education. In chemistry my final mark was 94, and my weighted average score was 113. Owing to these marks I was accepted to the Technion – because my Psychometric score wasn’t very impressive.

I was born during the time when my father played in “Arabian Nights,” and he decided to call me Shahrazada after the character who was narrating the stories.

Your father is an actor?

Yes, my father, Adnan Tarabshi, is a playwright and actor in theater and film, and most of the money he earned from his movies he donated to recreational programs and lessons as well as to community centers in our sector. He also acted with my older brother in the movie “The Syrian Bride,” and my mother Linda was among the group of seamstresses who sewed the costumes for the movie.

Tell me about your village.

Maghar is a large village, with over 20,000 residents. The population is mixed, consisting of Druze, Muslims and Christians. Most of the residents are Druze, like me.

Not much is publicly known about the Druze faith.

That’s true, and even within the Druze community studying the religion is a long process, of which not all is evident. Basically, it is a philosophical religion, with philosophers as our central figures, namely Plato, Aristotle and Pythagoras. For us, faith is wisdom, and our holy books the philosophical manuscripts written by these great philosophers. The faith is based on the balance between emotion and intelligence, with the final determinant being intellect. In order to understand yourself better and your life you must be more reflective and listen to yourself, nature, and those around you.

And what with regards to doing mitzvoth (acts of grace)?

We are not obligated to fast, pray or conduct religious ceremony. Man must act according to his faith, and his actions must be out of devotion as opposed to compulsion. Our houses of worship – the “hilwa” – are very modest and free from ornamentation. They are actually the places where people of the Druze faith can read their holy books in solitude.

Is it true that you believe in reincarnation?

Yes. According to the Druze belief, the soul is the shining light of the living image, and when it departs the body must be buried immediately. The human body houses the soul and must therefore never be harmed. Accordingly, murder is a most heinous crime, and it is forbidden for a murderer to ever read from the holy books.

Tell me a bit about yourself.

My parents are Adnan and Linda, as I previously mentioned, and I have two brothers: Firas and Bashar. I’m the middle child. I was born in December 1987,  soon will be  26 years old. I’m married to Mhemad Sirhan, and we have a half year old daughter, Celine. I studied at the El-Mantsura School, which was near my home.

When did you begin studying at the Technion?

In 2006 I came to Technion to study physics. The first year was very difficult. There aren’t many buses that go to Maghar from here, and each way took me over two hours. It was exhausting, and I just barely passed half of my courses. At the end of the year my parents insisted that I moved into the dorms on campus to save me the travel time. Living at the dorms is not really considered acceptable within the community, especially for conservative families like mine, but I understood that living here would help me focus on my studies more. I spoke with other religious families and explained the situation, and they all agreed that this was best for me.

Did you complete your degree?

Yes, and close to the end of my studies I took a particle physics course with Professor Shlomit Terem. She told us about her research work in CERN and about the world’s largest particle accelerator (LHC), and I still remember how one of my fellow classmates told me, “You’ll get there, too, one day.”

And did you?

Yes. During my final semester I sent an email to Shlomit expressing my interests and she accepted me for graduate work with her. Three weeks later I travelled to CERN for two weeks. This was the beginning of my graduate research that focused on one branch of the Supersymmetry theory, which is an extension of the standard model.

Please explain.

The standard model is  a theoretical framework accepted by most of the scientific community, and it explains the fundamental forces and elementary particles found in nature. However, it does not fully explain for example, the acceleration of the expansion of the universe and the existence of dark matter. In my MSc I studied the Supersymmetry theory using a new accelerator tool, in order to understand these phenomena.

And how did it turn out?

Doing the masters degree was great – my work with Shlomit and her graduate students as well as with the international team of scientists from CERN was wonderful. I worked very hard and I really enjoyed myself. Today I’m pursuing my PhD with Professor Orit Hazzan from the Department of Education in Technology and Science as my thesis advisor, and have started studying in the “Mabatim” program.

And you haven’t forgotten your teacher, Dahar Adawi?

Of course not. Even before I started my master degree I prepared a poster thanking him with the intention of taking a picture of myself holding it in Switzerland. The poster was waiting for me under my bed, and when I travelled to CERN I took a picture of myself with it and sent it to Dahar. Since, it was because of him that I embarked into the world of physics in the first place.

What is so fascinating about physics?

Physics, philosophy and religion are the three languages that explain the world and life, and I view them as the three quarks of life.  Human beings like to ask questions to understand the ‘why’ and ‘how’ – and through these idioms we are able to attain answers. There is also a certain parallel between the different idioms, for example, God (in the religion) is thought (in philosophy) and power (in physics).

What made you interested in teaching?

The situation in the school system is very difficult today. I believe that good teachers can make an enormous impact. My dream is to help students succeed and enjoy school, just as I did. I would like to see students make their way in academia or the workforce, and nurture a happier and less violent society. I aspire to one day build my own school, one which will expose students to a variety of interesting fields and encourage them to ask questions. I want to develop new teaching methods, which rely on the three areas I mentioned before – philosophy, physics and religion – in combination with art, because art is the power that enables us to navigate between these three areas.

Is your aim to give back to the community?

Yes, I was blessed with a very good life, and I know that it isn’t because I “deserve” it but because it has led me to help others. And when a person knows how to share with others, he never loses but only gains.

Where did you get this idea?

From my home. In our community, when you make coffee in the morning, we take into consideration that someone else will join you and this is why we always make a second cup. After we eat a large meal we distribute the leftovers to people in the neighborhood, and when someone is in distress, we organize help. We were raised this way, on giving back to the community and on respect for others, and today it is a part of my life. I dream of seeing many happy faces around me and believe in my ability to do this also through physics. If everyone in his/her community will grant happiness to others, we will all be more contented, and society will be better and less violent.

What are you doing today in this respect?

I am developing partnerships between organizations to promote the importance of learning physics and art, in the hope that the Ministry of Education will allocate hours of reinforcement in physics for innovative projects that offer exciting teaching methods to excite students and get them interested in the field. I strongly believe in recruiting parents and turning them into partners in the learning process. I believe that it’s a very important element in the learning success of children.

Are you also involved in the Druze community?

Certainly. It is very important for me to influence particularly my own community, and this is why in my undergraduate studies I volunteered in a Unit devoted to the advancement of students – I tracked down Druze students in their freshman year at the Technion to let them know about this Unit in case they need support with issues such as dormitories and other problems.  Since then I initiated different projects, among them “Artistic Physicists,” to improve the study of physics in Druze villages.

How would you summarize your educational worldview?

Those who lack cannot give and this is why we must provide our children with happiness so that they may be able to pass it on to future generations. From my point of view, intelligence is happiness, and we received it from our forefathers in order to expand on it and pass it on.