I am a comparative-historical and political sociologist of empire and state-formation, modernization, and development. I study how law and religion organize elites and build states. I specialize in the colonial and modern histories of Southeast Asia. I received my doctorate in Sociology from the University of Chicago and postdoctoral training from the University of Michigan. Currently, I am a lecturer at the National University of Singapore College and am jointly appointed in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology.