Navigating and Celebrating Strongly Correlated, Disordered Landscapes

In condensed matter physics, interactions between individuals and disorder give rise to fascinating phenomena such as collective behavior, localization, and emergence. Here, I will trace two parallel journeys in my explorations in this branch of physics. On the research path, I will share the story of a decades-long hunt for emergent fractional particles and its recent culmination. On the career path, I will share the joys and challenges of navigating the academic landscape. Throughout, I will reflect on the inspiration drawn from incredible women in Physics, including those featuring in two special events in this meeting related to a staged reading of the play 'Delicate Particle Logic' and to 2023 Nobel Science.'