Benjamin Wiseman

Background

About Benjamin Wiseman

My interest in electric transmission and distribution was kindled by a visit to Brazil’s Operador Nacional do Sistema Elétrico during a 2013 study abroad. I observed one of their primary control centers in Rio de Janeiro, and realized how power consumption fluctuates tremendously based on time of the day, temperature, and external events such as World Cup games. When I arrived back in Texas, I developed this interest by taking a variety of power systems courses, covering power system state estimation, transmission, control, markets, and optimization. I collaborated with Dr. Le Xie as an undergraduate to investigate power system dynamical modeling and composed and presented a conference paper based on the results. This relationship continued into graduate school, where I recently defended my Master’s thesis on the effects of residential air conditioner dynamics on power system stability. During the last two summers, a pair of internships enabled me to connect my academic experiences to practice. In 2016, I saw both the complexity and importance of maintaining accurate power distribution system models during an internship at CenterPoint. Last summer, I examined how different software packages could interpret and simulate the same modeling information differently during an internship at ERCOT. Both of these experiences helped reinforce my interest in power systems, and to guide my academic and professional interests. With my Master's thesis defended and cleared, I am excited to announce I will be returning to CenterPoint as a full time employee in October 2018. I will be working as Engineer I for their electric utility business in Houston, Texas. In my spare time, I enjoy watching sports, especially college football, and hurricane tracking. Growing up in southern Louisiana, I was raised on SEC football and saw firsthand the power of tropical cyclones. And while I certainly enjoy barbecue, I will never turn down good seafood!