Dr. Lórien MacEnulty is a non-binary computational physicist by training, a science communicator by trade, and a feminist researcher in training. Energetic and meticulous, dedicated to justice, diversity, and the scientific method, they aim to strategically improve the hospitability of the computational and physical sciences to minorities through data, graphic design, and software development.

After earning B.S. degrees in physics and mathematics, in addition to a B.A.J. in news journalism from Drake University (class of 2020), Lórien obtained their doctorate in theoretical physics from the Quantum Theory of Materials group at Trinity College Dublin in 2025.

With €420k+ in grants and scholarships—from public and private institutions in the USA, Ireland, France, Switzerland, and Belgium—Lórien has a proven track record of obtaining resources to conduct high-quality open-science research. Across 9+ years of experience in physics (and four in mathematics), Dr. MacEnulty has engaged in research spanning many topics, including (in chronological order) computational and experimental particle physics (funded in part by a local branch of NASA), theoretical atomic physics, physics and philosophy, computational elementary particle physics (funded by the US NSF), social psychology, computational applied mathematical magnetostatics and, finally, electronic structure theory. This research has led them to many world-class institutions, from Vanderbilt University (USA), Trinity College Dublin (IE), the Université Grenoble-Alpes (FR), and now to the Université catholique de Louvain (BE), where Lórien works as a postdoctoral researcher in the modeling division (MODL) of the Institut de la Matière Condensée et de la Nanoscience (IMCN). Lórien has thus been exposed to a multitude of intersecting environments, a cumulative experience that equipped them with nuanced intuition into how scientific cultures influence gender dynamics and vice versa.

Lórien was born and raised in Colorado, USA. They completed the International Baccalaureate Diploma Years program at Palmer High School. A lifelong sportsperson—they currently play basketball, cricket, and tennis—and amateur artist/builder—woodwork, illustration, blacksmithing, photography, web and graphic design, in particular, typography (see the home page for their project tree)—they have a hard time sitting still.