Recombining emotion and rationality.
I study Computer Science and Theatre. It might sound like an odd pairing, but I've come to see them as two sides of the same whole. It's a mindset I carry into both my research and my acting.
Computer science teaches you to see a problem as something to build. Theatre teaches you to see it as a person whose needs aren't being met. I don't think those are two different skills. I think they're the same skill, aimed at the same problem.
In my research at the Design, Technology, and Research program, I am studying disruptive innovation in CS education mainly through interviews with faculty. But our own class ran into the same problem the faculty described: it's hard to think disruptively when you feel exposed. So I started opening our sessions with a theatre warm-up. It's silly on purpose. Now, it's easier for us to say our own half-formed, embarrassing ideas out loud. Breaking out of your assumptions takes real vulnerability.
It works the other way too. While acting, it's easy to read a script and jump to conclusions about what kind of person a character is, then play that decision in a way that's flat and lifeless. But reasoning more systematically, about why they became who they are, what kind of society shaped them, gets you a far deeper read on why they do what they do than just following your first impulse.
Research & projects
Curvature Statistics of Sculptural Form
An automated Python pipeline (trimesh, PyMeshLab) that scrapes, cleans, and remeshes 400+ 3D meshes from four sources to a standard 1mm resolution, an approach I chose after evaluating 15 methods across 5 libraries. A batch tool computes six curvature metrics per mesh, and a Jensen-Shannon divergence matrix and interactive web viewer compare the collections. Preliminary results suggest sculptural curvature aligns more closely with man-made than natural objects.
Disruptive Innovation in CS Education
Ongoing research into disruptive innovation in computer science education. I built prototype web games and used them in 7 interviews with 5 CS researchers (4 faculty, 1 PhD student) to test whether a game format makes challenging ideas easier to explore. The games helped participants engage with uncomfortable ideas by letting them adopt roles other than their own.
GeneAtlas
Co-designed a secure, centralized DNA synthesis screening system with a novel accountability mechanism. Runner-up technology project and Intellectual Ventures Sponsor Award. The project separately received an Open Philanthropy grant.
Patch: Text-to-3D Generator
Co-founded a team that landed on a natural-language text-to-3D model generator after cycling through several ideas. I led market research and user outreach, and pitched the project at demo day.
On stage
Marie Antoinette
Currently in rehearsal, playing Joseph and Mr. Sauce in Adjmi's retelling of the French Revolution from Marie's own perspective, turning the accepted narrative of her life on its head.
Vinegar Tom
Played four roles across Churchill's play about how women who don't fit society's norms are perceived and punished, set against the backdrop of a 17th-century witch hunt.
あなたの”はたらく”を想像してみよう。
A devised Japanese-language play built directly from conversations with the local community about the future of work. Performed entirely in Japanese.
Museum
Coordinated and directed the understudy performance, running rehearsals with the understudy cast and supporting principal rehearsals.
Get in touch
Reach me at ilyasolovjov2027@u.northwestern.edu, find me on LinkedIn, or see my code on GitHub.