Stanford University
Showing 501-596 of 596 Results
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Adele Tanaka
CARS Associate Director, Center for Automotive Research at Stanford (CARS)
Current Role at StanfordCARS Associate Director
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Sindy Tang
Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment and Professor, by courtesy, of Radiology and of Bioengineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsProf. Sindy K.Y. Tang develops engineering platforms that measure biological systems and convert these measurements into quantitative datasets. Her research focuses on experimental systems that probe biological processes across cellular and tissue scales, particularly how physical context—geometry, mechanics, and spatial organization—shapes biological function. Current work spans immune diagnostics, spatial tissue sampling for multi-omics analysis, and single-cell perturbation studies.
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Søren Henri Taverniers
Physical Science Research Scientist
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDesign and implementation of novel statistical algorithms based on the Multilevel Monte Carlo method to accelerate the quantification of uncertainty in quantities of interest for multiphase systems such as reactive granular media and subsurface flows.
Development of neural-network based surrogate approaches to enable data-driven sensitivity analysis and uncertainty quantification for multiscale systems such as energy storage systems, and accelerate the design process of such devices. -
George Toye
Adjunct Professor
BioGeorge Toye, Ph.D., P.E., is adjunct professor in Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University.
While teaching advanced project-based engineering design thinking and STEM-based innovations at the graduate level as part of ME310, he also contributes to research in varied topics in engineering education, and effective globally-distributed team collaborations. As well, he remains active in entrepreneurship and varied advising/consulting work.
George earned his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from U.C. Berkeley, and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering with minor in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University.
Since 1983, he has enjoyed volunteering annually to organize regional and state-level Mathcounts competitions to promote mathematics education amongst middle-school aged students. -
Carlos Valencia
Undergraduate, Mechanical Engineering
BioBorn in Camarillo, California, Carlos Valencia learned early that challenges forge resilience. As the son of a hard-working immigrant family, he spent summers working in the avocado and lemon industry—a childhood that taught him the value of grit and the power of opportunity. Today, as a Mechanical Engineering student at Stanford University, he channels that determination into robotics, education advocacy, and uplifting communities.
Carlos loves learning about robotic technology and has worked on numerous projects related to the field. Carlos’s passion for engineering took root in high school. As the former president of the ACHS MESA (Mathematics, Engineering, Science, & Achievement) chapter, he mentored 45+ first-generation students, leading them to compete in national STEM competitions. In the summer of 2024, he worked with L5 Automation, a robotics company based in La Cañada, CA, in Olmos, Peru where he helped develop harvesting platforms for one of the largest agriculture producers in Peru.
Beyond engineering, believes in the power of storytelling to inspire action. His TEDx talk, “Avocados Rot” drew from his upbringing to challenge audiences to seize fleeting chances—a message that resonated globally. Recognized as Camarillo Youth of the Year (2023) and awarded the Bronze Volunteer Award by the American Red Cross, he balances innovation with service, whether rebuilding communities after disasters or leading robotics teams.
Carlos’s mission is to democratize STEM access. Carlos envisions a world where education erases barriers. He aims to pioneer low-cost robotic solutions for agriculture and healthcare while expanding mentorship networks for first-gen students. When not engineering or volunteering, he unwinds by hiking, playing pickup soccer, or tinkering with 3D printers. -
William R. Van Dalsem
Adjunct Lecturer, Mechanical Engineering
BioBill recently completed 40+ years at NASA. Bill's goal is to help the next generation of engineers address the complex challenges facing society, such as climate change, and the resulting critical needs to achieve greener energy and transportation and reduce the impact of wildfires and droughts.
He graduated from Stanford with a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering (with a minor in Aeronautics and Astronautics) in 1984, as well as a Master's in Mechanical Engineering in 1981. Bill received his Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Santa Barbara where his capstone project was an operational diffuser augmented wind turbine. Bill was a University of California Regent Scholar.
At NASA, Bill began as a research scientist in computational fluid dynamics, eventually providing leadership to organizations that provided aerodynamic support to activities ranging from the Space Shuttle to V/STOL aircraft. Bill led NASA-wide programs which brought high-performance computing to bear on Earth sciences, multi-disciplinary physics to aerospace design, and explored the application of nano and quantum technologies to NASA missions. Bill led NASA Ames' Intelligent Systems Division, which provided critical software to NASA's Earth-like planet detecting Kepler mission, two missions to the Moon, and many innovative small spacecraft missions. Bill spent seven years as a senior systems engineer in the NASA Ames Office of the Chief Engineer. Bill served as the Deputy Director and Chief Strategy Officer of the NASA Ames Aeronautics Directorate, when among his other duties he envisioned a Data & Reasoning Fabric to enable autonomous aircraft to provide critical services in complex environments. In 2020, Bill received NASA's highest recognition, the NASA Distinguished Service Medal.
Bill is learning about exciting new challenges and creative student solutions from his participation in the Stanford Mechanical Engineering Senior Capstone Program. In return, he is trying to provide some lessons learned from working some of NASA's most exciting and challenging missions.
Stanford Mechanical Engineering Senior Capstone Program:
https://me170.stanford.edu -
Carina Veil
Postdoctoral Scholar, Mechanical Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsLearning-enhanced control for soft bioinspired robots
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Shilpa Vijay
Postdoctoral Scholar, Mechanical Engineering
BioShilpa received her PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, and was advised by Dr. Mitul Luhar. For her dissertation, she worked on developing structured porous surfaces for passive flow control, with applications to drag reduction and heat transfer. Her research interests lie in turbulent boundary layer flow, thermal/particle mixing and transport, and applications of experimental techniques to a variety of problems.
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Ken Waldron
Professor (Research) of Mechanical Engineering, Emeritus
BioKenneth J. Waldron is Professor of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering at UTS. He is also Professor Emeritus from the Design Group in the Department of Mechanical Engineering of Stanford University. He holds bachelors and masters degrees from the University of Sydney, and PhD from Stanford. He works in machine design, and design methodology with a particular focus on robotic and mechatronic systems.
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Hai Wang
Silas Palmer Professor of Engineering
BioHai Wang is Silas H. Palmer Professor of Engineering in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University. His research interests are high-speed propulsion, combustion, and renewable energy conversion. His current research topics include combustion chemistry of conventional and renewable fuels, detonation, high-speed propulsion, quantum-chemistry guided battery materials design, and transport theories. He is the author and coauthor of recent papers in scholarly journals, including "Stable sodium-sulfur electrochemistry enabled by phosphorus-based complexation" in PNAS, “Geometric modeling and analysis of detonation cellular stability" in Proceedings of the Combustion Institute, "Flame-formed carbon nanoparticles exhibit quantum dot behaviors" in PNAS, "Nanoparticles in dilute gases: Equivalence of momentum accommodation and surface adsorption" in Physical Review E, "A Physics-based approach to modeling real-fuel combustion chemistry. I. Evidence from experiments, and thermodynamic, chemical kinetic and statistical considerations" in Combustion and Flame, and “Formation of nascent soot and other condensed-phase materials in flames” in Proceedings of the Combustion Institute. He was the Editor-in-Chief of Progress in Energy and Combustion Science, a highly influential energy journal published by Elsevier with an impact factor of 35.3 (2021). Currently, he serves as the President of the Combustion Institute - an international, non-profit, educational and scientific society that promotes and disseminates research activities in all areas of combustion science and technology for the advancement of many communities around the world.
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Phillip Wickham
Adjunct Lecturer, Design Courses
Bio“Of the 10,000 start-ups we studied, 65% died because of dysfunctional human dynamic.” - Noam Wasserman (Founder’s Dilemma), HBS
Phil Wickham believes that a leader's energy and its impact on organizational culture is under-appreciated for its role in successful innovation.
Phil is Co-Founder and Executive Managing Director of Sozo Ventures, a $1.7-billion venture fund with offices in Redwood City and Tokyo. Sozo has, for over 15 years, invested in disruptive data science start-ups with global ambitions, specifically supporting them with early, intelligent engagement with Japanese markets. Notable successes include Palantir, Twitter (X), Square, MongoDB, Coinbase, Zoom, ChorusAI and Fastly. Sozo is also an early investor in Applied Intuition, Anduril, Saronic, Grammarly, Deel, Chainalysis, Need, Molten, Mercy Bio, Yellow Card and Carbon Robotics.
Phil is emeritus CEO and Chairman of the Kauffman Fellows. Over 30 years, he’s shepherded the development of nearly 1000 emerging leaders in venture capital in more than 60 countries. During his tenure, more than 300 new venture funds were created from within the Kauffman global community. He also helped conceive, staff and seed-fund TrueBridge Capital Partners (FoF), as well as The Kauffman Fellows Fund (direct), and is an emeritus advisor to the Creandum Fund in Stockholm, Angular Ventures in London/Tel Aviv, Taro Ventures in Tokyo, Frontline Ventures in Dublin and MaC Ventures in LA.
From 2018-2022, Phil taught capital formation at Waseda University as a Visiting Professor. In 2024, he co-founded the 11KS Foundation in Japan to promote innovation education. Phil has also published two #1 best-sellers in Japan on capital formation for startups and writes regularly for publications there.
He was raised on hockey rinks in Upstate New York, and has been playing competitive tennis for longer than he cares to admit. He is an avid collector of antique maps—a passion passed down by his father—and often invokes the parable of the “Island of California” to reinforce the importance of good inquiry and challenging assumptions. He is the proud father of two daughters, the youngest of three children and a screaming Enneagram Type 7.
University of Arizona, BSME, 1987
Rensselaer, MBA, 1994
Kauffman Fellows, 1997 -
Jeffrey Robinson Wood
Capstone Course & Lab Projects Development Director, Mechanical Engineering
Current Role at StanfordME Capstone Course and Lab Project Development Director
Jeff is the ME Capstone Course and Lab Projects Development Director, where he brings his 25-year industry experience to the role. He is responsible for the ongoing strategy, design, curriculum plan and instruction plans for capstone courses in the Mechanical Engineering Department, as part of a broad effort to redesign the curriculum requirements for the undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering.
Lecturer, ME170 - Mechanical Engineering Design: Integrating Context with Engineering
Jeff is a lecturer for the capstone course he has developed, where he brings his extensive experience with the industry product development process to the class. In addition to establishing budget, resource, timeline requirements, Jeff has successfully promoted incorporating themes into the course consistent with the goals of the department and university – to address the pressing needs of human society: energy, sustainability, health, transportation.
Member, Undergraduate Studies Committee, Mechanical Engineering
Innovation Mentor, TomKat Center for Sustainable Energy -
Thomas Wooldridge
Ph.D. Student in Mechanical Engineering, admitted Autumn 2025
BioMy name is Thomas Wooldridge. I recently graduated with my BS in Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University. I am currently a research assistant in Dr. Ron Hanson's lab group, where I am interested in working with shock tubes, laser analytic systems, and hypersonics. I enjoy spending time outside, playing golf and badminton, and going to the gym.
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Peter Xie
Ph.D. Student in Mechanical Engineering, admitted Autumn 2023
BioResearch:
Engineer developing hydrogels for cancer immunotherapies -
Kun Xu
Postdoctoral Scholar, Mechanical Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMaterials characterization by using advanced electron microscopy
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Xiao Yang (杨潇)
Postdoctoral Scholar, Mechanical Engineering
BioXiao Yang is a postdoctoral fellow of Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University. Xiao received his bachelor degree from Tianjin University in China in June 2016, and obtained his doctoral degree from Tianjin University in China in June 2023. Xiao’s research interests focus on fabrication and application of functional liquid crystal elastomer composites.
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Rozie Zangeneh
Physical Science Research Scientist
BioDr. Rozie Zangeneh is a physical science research scientist in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Stanford. She develops and utilizes scientific computational tools and conducts massively parallel computations to study detailed physical processes in these systems and develops data-driven low-order models for affordable computation of highly turbulent systems.
Rozie received her Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maine. Her primary research interests include turbulence modeling (LES and RANS), data-driven and reduced-order models, high-speed aero-thermodynamics, and the aerodynamics of wind turbines. -
Hanfeng Zhai
Ph.D. Student in Mechanical Engineering, admitted Autumn 2023
BioI study mechanics of materials using computer simulations across multiple length and time scales. I am currently working on understanding how material defects and microstructures govern macroscopic mechanical behaviors. This includes constructing plasticity theory from statistics of dislocations, homogenization theory of digital rocks, and developing data-driven methods for multiscale simulations.
I did Research Interns at Mitsubishi Electric Research Labs (working on machine learning for dynamical and energy systems) and Tokyo Electron (working on computational modeling of semiconductor manufacturing).
I am currently teaching (TA & co-lecture) for Elasticity & Inelasticity (ME340). I served as the TA for Finite Element Method (ME335A). -
Renee Zhao
Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering and, by courtesy, of Bioengineering and of Materials Science and Engineering
BioRuike Renee Zhao is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Stanford University, where she directs the Soft Intelligent Materials Laboratory. Originally from the historic city of Xi'an, she earned her BS from Xi'an Jiaotong University in 2012. She then pursued Solid Mechanics at Brown University, obtaining her MS in 2014 and PhD in 2016. Following her doctoral studies, she completed postdoctoral training at MIT (2016–2018) before serving as an Assistant Professor at The Ohio State University (2018–2021).
Renee’s research focuses on developing stimuli-responsive soft composites for multifunctional robotic systems with integrated shape-changing, assembly, sensing, and navigation capabilities. By integrating mechanics, material science, and advanced material manufacturing, her work enables innovations in soft robotics, miniaturized biomedical devices, robotic surgery, origami systems, active metamaterials, and general deployable morphing structures.
Her contributions have been recognized with honors and awards, including the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE), DARPA Young Faculty Award (YFA, 2025), ARO Early Career Program (ECP) Award (2023), AFOSR Young Investigator Research Program (YIP) Award (2023), Eshelby Mechanics Award for Young Faculty (2022), ASME Henry Hess Early Career Publication Award (2022), ASME Pi Tau Sigma Gold Medal (2022), ASME Applied Mechanics Division Journal of Applied Mechanics Award (2021), NSF CAREER Award (2020), and ASME Applied Mechanics Division Haythornthwaite Research Initiation Award (2018). She is also recognized as a National Academy of Sciences Kavli Fellow and was named one of MIT Technology Review's 35 Innovators Under 35. -
Xiaolin Zheng
Professor of Mechanical Engineering, of Energy Science Engineering, Senior Fellow at the Precourt Institute for Energy and Professor, by courtesy, of Materials Science and Engineering
BioProfessor Zheng received her Ph.D. in Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering from Princeton University (2006), B.S. in Thermal Engineering from Tsinghua University (2000). Prior to joining Stanford in 2007, Professor Zheng did her postdoctoral work in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Harvard University. Professor Zheng is a member of MRS, ACS and combustion institute. Professor Zheng received the TR35 Award from the MIT Technology Review (2013), one of the 100 Leading Global Thinkers by the Foreign Policy Magazine (2013), 3M Nontenured Faculty Grant Award (2013), the Presidential Early Career Award (PECASE) from the white house (2009), Young Investigator Awards from the ONR (2008), DARPA (2008), Terman Fellowship from Stanford (2007), and Bernard Lewis Fellowship from the Combustion Institute (2004).
