School of Engineering
Showing 1-66 of 66 Results
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Amin Saberi
Professor of Management Science and Engineering
BioAmin Saberi is Professor of Management Science and Engineering at Stanford University. He received his B.Sc. from Sharif University of Technology and his Ph.D. from Georgia Institute of Technology in Computer Science. His research interests include algorithms, design and analysis of social networks, and applications. He is a recipient of the Terman Fellowship, Alfred Sloan Fellowship and several best paper awards.
Amin was the founding CEO and chairman of NovoEd Inc., a social learning environment designed in his research lab and used by universities such as Stanford as well as non-profit and for-profit institutions for offering courses to hundreds of thousands of learners around the world. -
Mehran Sahami
James and Ellenor Chesebrough Professor and Senior Fellow, by courtesy, at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies
BioMehran Sahami is Tencent Chair of the Computer Science Department and the James and Ellenor Chesebrough Professor in the School of Engineering. As a Professor (Teaching) in the Computer Science department, he is also a Bass Fellow in Undergraduate Education and previously served as the Associate Chair for Education in Computer Science. Prior to joining the Stanford faculty, he was a Senior Research Scientist at Google. His research interests include computer science education, artificial intelligence, and ethics. He served as co-chair of the ACM/IEEE-CS joint task force on Computer Science Curricula 2013, which created curricular guidelines for college programs in Computer Science at an international level. He has also served as chair of the ACM Education Board, an elected member of the ACM Council, and was appointed by California Governor Jerry Brown to the state's Computer Science Strategic Implementation Plan Advisory Panel.
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Maria Sakovsky
Assistant Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics
BioMaria Sakovsky's work focuses on the use of shape adaptation to realize space structures with reconfigurable geometry, stiffness, and even non-mechanical performance (ex. electromagnetic, optical). Particular focus is placed on the mechanics of thin fiber reinforced composite structures, the interplay between composite material properties and structural geometry, as well as embedded functionality and actuation of lightweight structures. The work has led to applications in deployable space structures, reconfigurable antennas, and soft robotics.
Maria Sakovsky received her BSc in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Toronto. Following this, she completed her MSc and PhD in Space Engineering at Caltech, where she developed a deployable satellite antenna based on origami concepts utilizing elastomer composites. She concurrently worked with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory on developing cryogenically rated thin-ply composite antennas for deep space missions. For her ongoing research on physically reconfigurable antennas, she was awarded the ETH Zürich postdoctoral fellowship as well as the Innovation Starting Grant. -
J Kenneth Salisbury, Jr.
Professor (Research) of Computer Science and of Surgery (Anatomy), Emeritus
BioSalisbury worked on the development of the Stanford-JPL Robot Hand, the JPL Force Reflecting Hand Controller, the MIT-WAM arm, and the Black Falcon Surgical Robot. His work with haptic interface technology led to the founding of SensAble Technology, producers of the PHANToM haptic interface and software. He also worked on the development of telerobotic systems for dexterity enhancement in the operating room. His current research focuses on human-machine interaction, cooperative haptics, medical robotics, and surgical simulation.
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Alberto Salleo
Professor of Materials Science and Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsNovel materials and processing techniques for large-area and flexible electronic/photonic devices. Polymeric materials for electronics, bioelectronics, and biosensors. Electrochemical devices for neuromorphic computing. Defects and structure/property studies of polymeric semiconductors, nano-structured and amorphous materials in thin films. Advanced characterization techniques for soft matter.
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Juan G. Santiago
Charles Lee Powell Foundation Professor
Current Research and Scholarly Interestshttp://microfluidics.stanford.edu/Projects/Projects.html
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Krishna Saraswat
Rickey/Nielsen Professor in the School of Engineering and Professor, by courtesy, of Materials Science and Engineering
On Leave from 10/01/2022 To 06/30/2023Current Research and Scholarly InterestsNew and innovative materials, structures, and process technology of semiconductor devices, interconnects for nanoelectronics and solar cells.
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Elizabeth Sattely
Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering
BioPlants have an extraordinary capacity to harvest atmospheric CO2 and sunlight for the production of energy-rich biopolymers, clinically used drugs, and other biologically active small molecules. The metabolic pathways that produce these compounds are key to developing sustainable biofuel feedstocks, protecting crops from pathogens, and discovering new natural-product based therapeutics for human disease. These applications motivate us to find new ways to elucidate and engineer plant metabolism. We use a multidisciplinary approach combining chemistry, enzymology, genetics, and metabolomics to tackle problems that include new methods for delignification of lignocellulosic biomass and the engineering of plant antibiotic biosynthesis.
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Michael Saunders
Professor (Research) of Management Science and Engineering, Emeritus
BioSaunders develops mathematical methods for solving large-scale constrained optimization problems and large systems of equations. He also implements such methods as general-purpose software to allow their use in many areas of engineering, science, and business. He is co-developer of the large-scale optimizers MINOS, SNOPT, SQOPT, PDCO, the dense QP and NLP solvers LSSOL, QPOPT, NPSOL, and the linear equation solvers SYMMLQ, MINRES, MINRES-QLP, LSQR, LSMR, LSLQ, LNLQ, LSRN, LUSOL.
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Dustin Schroeder
Associate Professor of Geophysics, of Electrical Engineering and Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment
BioMy research focuses on advancing the scientific and technical foundations of geophysical ice penetrating radar and its use in observing and understanding the interaction of ice and water in the solar system. I am primarily interested in the subglacial and englacial conditions of rapidly changing ice sheets and their contribution to global sea level rise. However, a growing secondary focus of my work is the exploration of icy moons. I am also interested in the development and application of science-optimized geophysical radar systems. I consider myself a radio glaciologist and strive to approach problems from both an earth system science and a radar system engineering perspective. I am actively engaged with the flow of information through each step of the observational science process; from instrument and experiment design, through data processing and analysis, to modeling and inference. This allows me to draw from a multidisciplinary set of tools to test system-scale and process-level hypotheses. For me, this deliberate integration of science and engineering is the most powerful and satisfying way to approach questions in Earth and planetary science.
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Brian Sedar
Adjunct Professor
Bio35 years of experience in EPC work spanning project controls, procurement, project development, construction, project management and operations. Bechtel Partner and Project Director for three of Bechtel’s largest international transportation infrastructure projects (click on Projects under Research), High Speed 1 in the UK, Hamad International Airport in Qatar and Upgrades for three London Underground lines. Served as General Manager of Bechtel’s Telecoms & Industrial business, Global Procurement Manager and launched its Global Water business.
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Samuel Seidel
Adjunct Professor
BioSam is the K12 Lab Director of Strategy + Research at the Stanford d.school, and co-author of Creative Hustle (Ten Speed Press, 2022), Changing the Conversation About School Safety (Stanford d.school, 2022), Hip Hop Genius 2.0 (Rowman & Littlefield, 2022), and Hip Hop Genius: Remixing High School Education (Rowman & Littlefield, 2011).
He speaks internationally about education, race, culture, systems, and design.
Sam graduated from Brown University with a degree in Education and a teaching certification, was a Visiting Practitioner at Harvard Graduate School of Education, a Scholar-in-Residence at Columbia University's Institute for Urban and Minority Education, and a Community Fellow at the Rhode Island School of Design. -
Debbie Senesky
Associate Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy and Associate Professor, by courtesy, of Electrical Engineering
BioDebbie G. Senesky is an Associate Professor at Stanford University in the Aeronautics and Astronautics Department and by courtesy, the Electrical Engineering Department. In addition, she is the Principal Investigator of the EXtreme Environment Microsystems Laboratory (XLab). Her research interests include the development of nanomaterials for extreme harsh environments, high-temperature electronics for Venus exploration, and microgravity synthesis of nanomaterials. In the past, she has held positions at GE Sensing (formerly known as NovaSensor), GE Global Research Center, and Hewlett Packard. She received the B.S. degree (2001) in mechanical engineering from the University of Southern California. She received the M.S. degree (2004) and Ph.D. degree (2007) in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. Prof. Senesky is the Site Director of nano@stanford. She is currently the co-editor of two technical journals: IEEE Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems and Sensors. In recognition of her research, she received the Emerging Leader Abie Award from AnitaB.org in 2018, Early Faculty Career Award from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 2012, Gabilan Faculty Fellowship Award in 2012, and Sloan Ph.D. Fellowship from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation in 2004.
Prof. Senesky's career path and research has been featured on Seeker, People Behind the Science podcast, The Future of Everything radio show, Space.com, and NPR's Tell Me More program. More information about Prof. Senesky can be found at https://xlab.stanford.edu and on Instagram (@astrodebs). -
Kawin Setsompop
Associate Professor of Radiology (Radiological Sciences Laboratory) and, by courtesy, of Electrical Engineering
BioKawin Setsompop is an Associate Professor of Radiology and, by courtesy, of Electrical Engineering. His research focuses on the development of novel MRI acquisition methods, with the goal of creating imaging technologies that can be used to help better understand brain structure and function for applications in Healthcare and Health sciences. He received his Master’s degree in Engineering Science from Oxford University and his PhD in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from MIT. Prior to joining Stanford, he was a postdoctoral fellow and subsequently a faculty at the A.A. Martinos center for biomedical imaging, MGH, as well as part of the Harvard and MIT faculty. His group has pioneered several widely-used MRI acquisition technologies, a number of which have been successfully translated into FDA-approved clinical products on Siemens, GE, Phillips, United Imaging and Bruker MRI scanners worldwide. These technologies are being used daily to study the brain in both clinical and neuroscientific fields.
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Ross Shachter
Associate Professor of Management Science and Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsProf. Shachter's research has focused on the representation, manipulation, and analysis of uncertainty and probabilistic reasoning in decision systems. As part of this work, he developed the DAVID influence diagram processing system for the Macintosh. He has developed models scheduling patients for cancer follow-up, and analyzing vaccination strategies for HIV and Helobacter pylori.
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Eric S.G. Shaqfeh
Lester Levi Carter Professor and Professor of Mechanical Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsI have over 25 years experience in theoretical and computational research related to complex fluids following my PhD in 1986. This includes work in suspension mechanics of rigid partlcles (rods), solution mechanics of polymers and most recently suspensions of vesicles, capsules and mixtures of these with rigid particles. My research group is internationally known for pioneering work in all these areas.
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Sheri D. Sheppard
Richard W. Weiland Professor in the School of Engineering, Emeritus
BioSheri Sheppard teaches both undergraduate and graduate design-related classes, and conducts research on fracture mechanics and applied finite element analysis, and on how people become engineers. From 1999-2008 she served as a Senior Scholar at the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, leading the Foundation’s engineering study. In addition to publishing technical papers, reports, and textbooks, she has led or co-led several large, multi-institutional projects to build new educational research programs and related resources, such as the Center for the Advancement of Engineering Education (CAEE), The National Center for Engineering Pathways to Innovation (Epicenter), and a program on summer research experiences for high school teachers. Her industry experience includes engineering positions at Detroit's "Big Three” — Ford Motor Company, General Motors Corporation, and Chrysler Corporation. She earned her bachelors degree from the University of Wisconsin, and her PhD at the University of Michigan. At Stanford she has served a chair of the faculty senate, as associate vice provost for graduate education, and is the longtime faculty founder of and adviser to the graduate student group MEwomen. Her work has been recognized with numerous honors and awards, including the Walter J. Gores Award, Stanford University's highest award for excellence in teaching and the Chester F. Carlson and Ralph Coats Roe Awards of the American Society for Engineering Education in recognition of distinguished accomplishment in engineering education, and for outstanding teaching and notable contributions to the mechanical engineering profession.
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Chungheon Shin
Research Engineer
BioChungheon Shin is the Research Director at the Codiga Resource Recovery Center at Stanford University. He is passionate about prospects for sustainability through resource recovery from waste streams and believes that engineering can make it possible. He has been developing and optimizing innovative processes that can recover resources while mitigating greenhouse gas emissions. His studies incorporate various processes (biological and physicochemical systems), scales of analyses (kinetics to systems-level), and computational skills (conventional and data-driven models). He received his Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering at Inha University (South Korea) while developing the Staged Anaerobic Fluidized-bed Membrane Bioreactor (SAF-MBR), enabling recovery of clean water and energy from municipal wastewater, with Professor Jaehoe Bae and Professor Perry L. McCarty. He was a postdoctoral scholar in the Civil and Environmental Engineering department at Stanford University under the supervision of Professor Craig S. Criddle and Adjunct Professor Sebastien Tilmans.
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Yoav Shoham
Professor of Computer Science, Emeritus
BioYoav Shoham is professor emeritus of computer science at Stanford University. A leading AI expert, Prof. Shoham is Fellow of AAAI, ACM and the Game Theory Society. Among his awards are the IJCAI Research Excellence Award, the AAAI/ACM Allen Newell Award, and the ACM/SIGAI Autonomous Agents Research Award. His online Game Theory course has been watched by close to a million people. Prof. Shoham has founded several AI companies, including TradingDynamics (acquired by Ariba), Katango and Timeful (both acquired by Google), and AI21 Labs. Prof. Shoham also chairs the AI Index initiative (www.AIindex.org), which tracks global AI activity and progress, and WeCode (www.wecode.org.il), a nonprofit initiative to train high-quality programmers from disadvantaged populations.
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Aaron Sidford
Assistant Professor of Management Science and Engineering and of Computer Science
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research interests lie broadly in the optimization, the theory of computation, and the design and analysis of algorithms. I am particularly interested in work at the intersection of continuous optimization, graph theory, numerical linear algebra, and data structures.
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Barbara G Simpson
Assistant Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering
BioOur research group is made up of a small team of talented students with a wide range of skills and experience. We explore advanced computational and experimental methods to characterize structural response. Our aim is to develop innovative structural systems that improve structural performance and reduce the effects of natural hazards on the built environment.
Research areas include resilient and sustainable design and retrofit of building structures and offshore renewable energy systems, performance-based earthquake engineering, and next-generation computational modeling, including real-time hybrid simulation for fluid-structure interaction. -
Bob Sinclair
Charles M. Pigott Professor in the School of Engineering
BioUsing high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, Sinclair studies microelectronic and magnetic thin film microstructure.
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David Sirkin
Research Engineer
BioDavid Sirkin is a Research Associate at Stanford University's Center for Design Research, where he focuses on design methodology, as well as the design of physical interactions between humans and robots, and autonomous vehicles and their interfaces. He is also a Lecturer in Electrical Engineering, where he teaches interactive device design. David frequently collaborates with, and consults for, local Silicon Valley and global technology companies including Siemens, SAP and Microsoft Research. He grew up in Florida, near the Everglades, and in Maine, near the lobsters.
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Hyongsok Tom Soh
Professor of Radiology (Early Detection), of Electrical Engineering, of Bioengineering and, by courtesy, of Chemical Engineering
BioDr. Soh received his B.S. with a double major in Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science with Distinction from Cornell University and his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University. From 1999 to 2003, Dr. Soh served as the technical manager of MEMS Device Research Group at Bell Laboratories and Agere Systems. He was a faculty member at UCSB before joining Stanford in 2015. His current research interests are in analytical biotechnology, especially in high-throughput screening, directed evolution, and integrated biosensors.
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Olav Solgaard
Director, Edward L. Ginzton Laboratory and Robert L. and Audrey S. Hancock Professor in the School of Engineering
BioThe Solgaard group focus on design and fabrication of nano-photonics and micro-optical systems. We combine photonic crystals, optical meta-materials, silicon photonics, and MEMS, to create efficient and reliable systems for communication, sensing, imaging, and optical manipulation.
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Andrew Spakowitz
Professor of Chemical Engineering, of Materials Science and Engineering and, by courtesy, of Applied Physics
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsTheory and computation of biological processes and complex materials
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Daniel Spielman
Professor of Radiology (Radiological Sciences Lab) and, by courtesy, of Electrical Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research interests are in the field of medical imaging, particularly magnetic resonance imaging and in vivo spectroscopy. Current projects include MRI and MRS at high magnetic fields and metabolic imaging using hyperpolarized 13C-labeled MRS.
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Alfred M. Spormann
Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and of Chemical Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMetabolism of anaerobic microbes in diseases, bioenergy, and bioremediation
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Robert Street
William Alden and Martha Campbell Professor in the School of Engineering, Emeritus
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsStreet focuses on numerical simulations related to geophysical fluid motions. His research considers the modeling of turbulence in fluid flows, which are often stratified, and includes numerical simulation of coastal upwelling, internal waves and sediment transport in coastal regions, flow in rivers, valley winds, and the planetary boundary layer.
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Hariharan Subramonyam
Assistant Professor (Research) of Education and, by courtesy, of Computer Science
BioHari Subramonyam is an Assistant Professor (Research) at the Graduate School of Education and a Faculty Fellow at Stanford's Institute for Human-Centered AI. He is also a member of the HCI Group at Stanford. His research focuses on augmenting critical human tasks (such as learning, creativity, and sensemaking) with AI by incorporating principles from cognitive psychology. He also investigates support tools for multidisciplinary teams to co-design AI experiences. His work has received multiple best paper awards at top human-computer interaction conferences, including CHI and IUI.
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Jenny Suckale
Assistant Professor of Geophysics and Center Fellow, by courtesy, at the Woods Institute for the Environment
BioMy research group studies disasters to reduce the risk they pose. We approach this challenge by developing customized mathematical models that can be tested against observational data and are informed by community needs through a scientific co-production process. We intentionally work on extremes across different natural systems rather than focusing on one specific natural system to identify both commonalities in the physical processes driving extremes and in the best practices for mitigating risk at the community level. Our current research priorities include volcanic eruptions, ice-sheet instability, permafrost disintegration, induced seismicity and flood-risk mitigation. I was recently awarded the Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers, the highest honor bestowed by the United States Government on science and engineering professionals in the early stages of their independent research careers and the CAREER award from the National Science Foundation.
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WaiChing Sun
Visiting Professor
BioProfessor Sun is currently visiting Stanford during the 2022-2023 academic year. He is an associate professor of civil engineering and engineering mechanics at Columbia University. He obtained his B.S. from UC Davis (2005); M.S. in civil engineering (geomechanics) from Stanford (2007); M.A. degree from Princeton (2008); and Ph.D. in theoretical and applied mechanics from Northwestern (2011). From 2011-2014, he worked in the mechanics of materials department at Sandia National Laboratories (Livermore, CA), first as a postdoc, then promoted to the rank of a senior member of technical staff in 2013. Sun's recent research interest is in high-precision machine learning and data-driven natural and man-made materials modeling. Dr. Sun has published over 70 journal articles. His research has been recognized by several awards across the globe, including the John Argyris Award from IACM, Leonard de Vinci Award from ASCE EMI, Zienkiewicz Numerical Methods in Engineering Prize, among others.
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Robert Sutton
Professor of Management Science & Engineering and, by courtesy, of Organizational Behavior at the Graduate School of Business
On Partial Leave from 04/01/2023 To 06/30/2023BioRobert Sutton is Professor of Management Science and Engineering and a Professor of Organizational Behavior (by courtesy) at Stanford. Sutton has been teaching classes on the psychology of business and management at Stanford since 1983. He is co-founder of the Center for Work, Technology and Organization, which he co-directed from 1996 to 2006. He is also co-founder of the Stanford Technology Ventures Program and the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design (which everyone calls “the d school”). Sutton and Stanford Business School's Huggy Rao recently launched the Designing Organizational Change Project, which is hosted by the Stanford Technology Ventures Program
Sutton studies innovation, leadership, the links between managerial knowledge and organization action, scaling excellence, and workplace dynamics. He has published over 100 articles and chapters on these topics in peer-reviewed journals and the popular press. Sutton’s books include Weird Ideas That Work: 11 ½ Practices for Promoting, Managing, and Sustaining Innovation, The Knowing-Doing Gap: How Smart Firms Turn Knowledge into Action (with Jeffrey Pfeffer), and Hard Facts, Dangerous Half-Truths, and Total Nonsense: Profiting from Evidence-Based Management (with Jeffrey Pfeffer). The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t and Good Boss, Bad Boss: How to Be the Best…. and Survive the Worst are both New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestsellers. His last book, Scaling-Up Excellence: Getting to More without Settling for Less (with Huggy Rao), was published in 2014 and is a Wall Street Journal and Publisher’s Weekly bestseller. Sutton's next book, The Asshole Survival Guide: How to Deal With People Who Treat You Like Dirt, will be published in September of 2017.
Professor Sutton’s honors include the award for the best paper published in the Academy of Management Journal in 1989, the Eugene L. Grant Award for Excellence in Teaching, selection by Business 2.0 as a leading “management guru” in 2002, and the award for the best article published in the Academy of Management Review in 2005. Hard Facts, Dangerous Half-Truths, and Total Nonsense was selected as the best business book of 2006 by the Toronto Globe and Mail. Sutton was named as one of 10 “B-School All-Stars” by BusinessWeek , which they described as “professors who are influencing contemporary business thinking far beyond academia.” In 2014, the London Business School honored Sutton with the Sumantra Ghoshal Award for Rigour and Relevance in the Study of Management.
Sutton is a Fellow at IDEO, a Senior Scientist at Gallup, and academic director of two Stanford executive education programs:Customer-Focused Innovation and the online Stanford Innovation and Entrepreneurship Certificate. His personal website is at www.bobsutton.net and he also blogs at Harvard Business Review and as an “influencer” on LinkedIn. Sutton tweets @work_matters. -
James Swartz
James H. Clark Professor in the School of Engineering and Professor of Chemical Engineering and of Bioengineering
On Leave from 10/01/2022 To 06/30/2023Current Research and Scholarly InterestsProgram Overview
The world we enjoy, including the oxygen we breathe, has been beneficially created by biological systems. Consequently, we believe that innovative biotechnologies can also serve to help correct a natural world that non-natural technologies have pushed out of balance. We must work together to provide a sustainable world system capable of equitably improving the lives of over 10 billion people.
Toward that objective, our program focuses on human health as well as planet health. To address particularly difficult challenges, we seek to synergistically combine: 1) the design and evolution of complex protein-based nanoparticles and enzymatic systems with 2) innovative, uniquely capable cell-free production technologies.
To advance human health we focus on: a) achieving the 120 year-old dream of producing “magic bullets”; smart nanoparticles that deliver therapeutics or genetic therapies only to specific cells in our bodies; b) precisely designing and efficiently producing vaccines that mimic viruses to stimulate safe and protective immune responses; and c) providing a rapid point-of-care liquid biopsy that will count and harvest circulating tumor cells.
To address planet health we are pursuing biotechnologies to: a) inexpensively use atmospheric CO2 to produce commodity biochemicals as the basis for a new carbon negative chemical industry, and b) mitigate the intermittency challenges of photovoltaic and wind produced electricity by producing hydrogen either from biomass sugars or directly from sunlight.
More than 25 years ago, Professor Swartz began his pioneering work to develop cell-free biotechnologies. The new ability to precisely focus biological systems toward efficiently addressing new, “non-natural” objectives has proven tremendously useful as we seek to address the crucial and very difficult challenges listed above. Another critical feature of the program is the courage (or naivete) to approach important objectives that require the development and integration of several necessary-but- not-sufficient technology advances. -
James Sweeney
Professor of Management Science & Engineering, Senior Fellow at the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, at the Precourt Institute for Energy and, by courtesy, at the Hoover Institution
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDeterminants of energy efficiency opportunities, barriers, and policy options. Emphasis on behavioral issues, including personal, corporate, or organizational. Behavior may be motivated by economic incentives, social, or cultural factors, or more generally, by a combination of these factors. Systems analysis questions of energy use.
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Joel Swisher
Adjunct Professor
BioJoel N. Swisher, PhD, PE, is Consulting Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Stanford University, where he teaches graduate-level courses on greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation (covering technical and business strategies to manage GHG risks) and electric utility planning methods (covering supply and demand-side resources, resource integration and expansion planning). His current research at Stanford addresses the integration of plug-in vehicles with the power grid and the barriers and synergies related to metering, tariffs, load management, customer incentives, and charging infrastructure.
Dr. Swisher is also an independent consultant with over 30 years experience in research and consulting on many aspects of clean energy technology. He is an expert in energy efficiency technology and policy, carbon offsets and climate change mitigation, and electric utility resource planning and economics. He has consulted with numerous utilities, manufacturers and technology companies on resource planning, energy efficiency, vehicle electrification and clean energy deployment strategies. He has also helped consumer-oriented firms design strategies to expand simple cost-saving energy investment programs into brand-building corporate sustainability campaigns.
Dr. Swisher is a thought leader in several areas of clean energy technology and business strategy. As Director of Technical Services and CTO for Camco International, Dr. Swisher helped develop carbon offset projects in reforestation, agriculture, renewable energy and building energy efficiency, and he has authored emission inventories, baseline studies and monitoring and verification plans for multilateral banks and private offset buyers. Starting in 1989, Dr. Swisher performed seminal research on carbon offset baselines and technical and economic analysis of carbon offsets in the energy and land-use sectors.
Dr. Swisher was managing director of research and consulting at Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), where he led RMI’s consulting team in work for numerous high-profile clients, including electric utilities and producers of goods ranging from semiconductor chips to potato chips. At RMI, he created the concept of the Smart Garage, which explores the energy system synergies in which vehicle electrification helps enable zero-emission vehicles and a cleaner power grid. He led an RMI team that convened an industrial consortium (including Alcoa, Johnson Controls, Google, etc.) to develop a new, lightweight, plug-in hybrid vehicle platform for Class 2 truck fleet applications. Collaborating with the design firm IDEO to conduct interdisciplinary design workshops, the RMI team initiated a working design to attract funding and move toward production, which proceeded as a spin-off company, Bright Automotive in Indiana.
Dr. Swisher holds a Ph.D. in Energy and Environmental Engineering from Stanford University. He is a registered Professional Engineer and speaks five languages. He is author of over 100 professional publications including The New Business Climate: A Guide to Lower Carbon Emissions and Better Business Performance and a bilingual (English and Portuguese) textbook on energy efficiency program design and evaluation and integrated energy resource planning.
