Jacob Sattelmair

Doctoral student, Department of Epidemiology

Growing up in rural Massachusetts, and encouraged by his parents to be outside and active, Jacob Sattelmair realized early on that exercise made him feel better. That realization has become the foundation of his present studies and plans for the future. As a Harvard undergraduate, Jake rowed competitively and majored in neurobiology. “I always leaned toward the behavioral side of neurobiology—why people do what they do,” he remarks. At Oxford he continued competitive rowing while pursuing a master’s degree in the science and medicine of athletic performance; for his thesis research Jake conducted a review of the literature on the link between exercise and cognitive function. “It gradually became clear to me that physical inactivity was a really big problem, that it was getting worse, and that we needed to do something about it,” he says. Jake applied to three bench-science programs but choose to pursue a doctorate in epidemiology at HSPH: “I wanted to apply science to help people’s lives.” Down the road Jake hopes to combine research with the development of self-sustaining corporate and school-based exercise programs. In the meantime he is helping to create interactive video games. Jake notes, “Using media and technology to promote health behaviors is a great social enterprise.”