This Space
My goal with this website is to present a deeper glimpse of my projects, educational experiences, and developing interests. After many years walking through laboratory halls, measuring liquids, plotting graphs, and daydreaming over scientific abstracts, I’ve grown intrigued with the extensive unstated activities that spark and nurture new knowledge within communities of investigators. I’m thus hoping to here provide, over time, short summaries of the stories behind my projects and publications. In doing so I'll also aim to share my explorations with the new data science technology stack I am learning.
Environmental context is a critical determinant of evolutionary trajectory. I'll therefore include descriptions of the environments (places and institutions) that have guided my intellectual growth. Given my long interest in biomineralization and biomolecular engineering, I'm retaining a space to present ideas and references related to making materials with biology. |
About Me
I am a data scientist who has conducted 14 years of research at the interface between materials science and bioengineering, having obtained B.S. and M.S. degrees in materials science and engineering (Ohio State) and a PhD in biomolecular science and engineering (UCSB). This was followed by two post-doctoral experiences focused on biomimetic chemistry and microfluidics (Leeds and Imperial) and then synthetic biology (NIST and Stanford). My research was motivated by the prospect of harnessing biology to make materials, such as through the possible future use of industrial fermentation to biomineralize semiconductor components in a manner similar to the growth of bones or seashells in nature. My journey though diverse laboratories and data sets, and my recent exposure to the pulse of bay area tech culture, have catalyzed a fascination with the potential of data science and artificial intelligence to accelerate industrial innovation. This has led me into my current role exploring applications of deep learning with the product research team at New Relic. Aspiration Fundamental to my fascination with technology is its power to transform human life for the better. My interest in the technology-society interface has motivated an engagement with several outreach efforts, including work in rural Peru with the UCSB chapter of Engineers Without Borders, and a year I spent as a part-time science instructor at Santa Barbara Middle School through an NSF fellowship program. Unique opportunities for positive social impact will be found at the intersection of materials engineering, data science, and social and economic innovation. |
About the background image at the top of this page:
This graphic, created by Peter Allen (http://www.engineering.ucsb.edu/~peta/gallery/), summarizes aspects of my PhD dissertation work in Dan Morse's Lab at UCSB. The foreground depicts a strand of DNA and the silica nanoparticles it encodes, both engineered to be co-displayed from the surface of a polymer micro-bead (not shown). Behind the DNA are representations of silica spicules, which are glass needle-like skeletal elements from a sea sponge (Tethya aurantia). Both the silica on the bead, bioengineered in the lab, and the silica in the spicules are encoded by the same gene, derived from the sea sponge. Faded in the far background are pictures of Tethya aurantia, the "orange puffball" sponge, a species which can be found in the ocean near Santa Barbara's coast.
This graphic, created by Peter Allen (http://www.engineering.ucsb.edu/~peta/gallery/), summarizes aspects of my PhD dissertation work in Dan Morse's Lab at UCSB. The foreground depicts a strand of DNA and the silica nanoparticles it encodes, both engineered to be co-displayed from the surface of a polymer micro-bead (not shown). Behind the DNA are representations of silica spicules, which are glass needle-like skeletal elements from a sea sponge (Tethya aurantia). Both the silica on the bead, bioengineered in the lab, and the silica in the spicules are encoded by the same gene, derived from the sea sponge. Faded in the far background are pictures of Tethya aurantia, the "orange puffball" sponge, a species which can be found in the ocean near Santa Barbara's coast.