Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance
Showing 201-300 of 349 Results
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Maya Mathur
Associate Professor (Research) of Pediatrics, of Medicine (Biomedical Informatics) and, by courtesy, of Epidemiology and Population Health
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsSynthesizing evidence across studies while accounting for biases
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Michaëlle Ntala Mayalu
Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering and, by courtesy, of Bioengineering
BioDr. Michaëlle N. Mayalu is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering. She received her Ph.D., M.S., and B.S., degrees in Mechanical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She was a postdoctoral scholar at the California Institute of Technology in the Computing and Mathematical Sciences Department. She was a 2017 California Alliance Postdoctoral Fellowship Program recipient and a 2019 Burroughs Wellcome Fund Postdoctoral Enrichment Program award recipient. She is also a 2023 Hypothesis Fund Grantee.
Dr. Michaëlle N. Mayalu's area of expertise is in mathematical modeling and control theory of synthetic biological and biomedical systems. She is interested in the development of control theoretic tools for understanding, controlling, and predicting biological function at the molecular, cellular, and organismal levels to optimize therapeutic intervention.
She is the director of the Mayalu Lab whose research objective is to investigate how to optimize biomedical therapeutic designs using theoretical and computational approaches coupled with experiments. Initial project concepts include: i) theoretical and experimental design of bacterial "microrobots" for preemptive and targeted therapeutic intervention, ii) system-level multi-scale modeling of gut associated skin disorders for virtual evaluation and optimization of therapy, iii) theoretical and experimental design of "microrobotic" swarms of engineered bacteria with sophisticated centralized and decentralized control schemes to explore possible mechanisms of pattern formation. The experimental projects in the Mayalu Lab utilize established techniques borrowed from the field of synthetic biology to develop synthetic genetic circuits in E. coli to make bacterial "microrobots". Ultimately the Mayalu Lab aims to develop accurate and efficient modeling frameworks that incorporate computation, dynamical systems, and control theory that will become more widespread and impactful in the design of electro-mechanical and biological therapeutic machines. -
Jay McClelland
Lucie Stern Professor in the Social Sciences, Professor of Psychology and, by courtesy, of Linguistics and of Computer Science
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research addresses topics in perception and decision making; learning and memory; language and reading; semantic cognition; and cognitive development. I view cognition as emerging from distributed processing activity of neural populations, with learning occurring through the adaptation of connections among neurons. A new focus of research in the laboratory is mathematical cognition and reasoning in humans and contemporary AI systems based on neural networks.
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Tracey McLaughlin
Professor of Medicine (Endocrinology)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. McLaughlin conducts clinical research related to obesity, insulin resistance, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease (CVD). Current studies include: 1) the impact of macronutrient composition on metabolism, DM2 and CVD; 2) comparison of different weight loss diets on metabolism and CVD risk reduction ; 3) role of adipocytes and adipose tissue immune cells in modulating insulin resistance; 4) use of continuous glucose monitoring and multi-omics to define metabolic phenotype and precision diets
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Jennifer A McNab
Associate Professor (Research) of Radiology (Radiological Sciences Laboratory)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research is focused on developing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) methods that probe brain tissue microstructure. This requires new MRI contrast mechanisms, strategic encoding and reconstruction schemes, physiological monitoring, brain tissue modeling and validation. Applications of these methods include neuronavigation, neurosurgical planning and the development of improved biomarkers for brain development, degeneration, disease and injury.
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Vinod Menon
Rachael L. and Walter F. Nichols, MD, Professor and Professor, by courtesy, of Education and of Neurology and Neurological Sciences
On Partial Leave from 12/16/2025 To 03/15/2026Current Research and Scholarly InterestsEXPERIMENTAL, CLINICAL AND THEORETICAL SYSTEMS NEUROSCIENCE
Cognitive neuroscience; Systems neuroscience; Cognitive development; Psychiatric neuroscience; Functional brain imaging; Dynamical basis of brain function; Nonlinear dynamics of neural systems. -
Emmanuel Mignot, MD, PhD
Craig Reynolds Professor of Sleep Medicine and Professor, by courtesy, of Genetics and of Neurology and Neurological Sciences
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe research focus of the laboratory is the study of sleep and sleep disorders such as narcolepsy and Kleine Levin syndrome. We also study the neurobiological and genetic basis of the EEG and develop new tools to study sleep using nocturnal polysomnography. Approaches mostly involve human genetic studies (GWAS, sequencing), EEG signal analysis (deep learning), and immunology (narcolepsy is an autoimmune disease of the brain). We also work on autoimmune encephalitis.
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Carlos Milla
Professor of Pediatrics (Pulmonary Medicine) and, by courtesy, of Medicine (Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsAt Stanford University I developed and currently direct the CF Translational Research Center. The overarching goal of the center is to provide the groundwork to streamline, accelerate, and promote the translation of basic discoveries into effective therapies and interventions to benefit patients affected by cystic fibrosis. My laboratory group currently has three main lines of investigation: respiratory cell biology in CF; remote biochemical monitoring; and lung physiology in young children.
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John Mitchell
Mary and Gordon Crary Family Professor in the School of Engineering, and Professor, by courtesy, of Electrical Engineering and of Education
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsProgramming languages, computer security and privacy, blockchain, machine learning, and technology for education
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Subhasish Mitra
William E. Ayer Professor of Electrical Engineering and Professor of Computer Science
BioSubhasish Mitra holds the William E. Ayer Endowed Chair Professorship in the Departments of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Stanford University. He directs the Stanford Robust Systems Group, serves on the leadership team of the Microelectronics Commons AI Hardware Hub funded by the US CHIPS and Science Act, leads the Computation Focus Area of the Stanford SystemX Alliance, and is the Associate Chair (Faculty Affairs) of Computer Science. His research ranges across Robust Computing, NanoSystems, Electronic Design Automation (EDA), and Neurosciences. Results from his research group have influenced almost every contemporary electronic system and have inspired significant government and research initiatives in multiple countries. He has held several international academic appointments — the Carnot Chair of Excellence in NanoSystems at CEA-LETI in France, Invited Professor at EPFL in Switzerland, and Visiting Professor at the University of Tokyo in Japan. Prof. Mitra also has consulted for major technology companies including AMD (XIlinx), Cisco, Google, Intel, Merck (EMD Electronics), and Samsung.
In the field of Robust Computing, he has created many key approaches for circuit failure prediction, CASP on-line diagnostics, QED system validation, soft error resilience, and X-Compact test compression. Their adoption by industry is growing rapidly, in markets ranging from cloud computing to automotive systems, under various names (Silicon Lifecycle Management, Predictive Health Monitoring, In-System Test Architecture, In-field Scan, In-fleet Scan). His X-Compact approach has proven essential to cost-effective manufacturing and high-quality testing of almost all 21st century systems. X-Compact and its derivatives enabled billions of dollars of cost savings across the industry.
In the field of NanoSystems, with his students and collaborators, he demonstrated several firsts: the first NanoSystems hardware among all beyond-silicon nanotechnologies for energy-efficient computing (the carbon nanotube computer), the first 3D NanoSystem with computation immersed in data storage, the first published end-to-end computing systems using resistive memories (Resistive RAM-based non-volatile computing systems delivering 10-fold energy efficiency versus embedded flash), and the first monolithic 3D integration combining heterogeneous logic and memory technologies in silicon foundry. These received wide recognition: cover of NATURE, several Highlights to the US Congress, and highlight as "important scientific breakthrough" by news organizations worldwide.
Prof. Mitra's honors include the Harry H. Goode Memorial Award (by IEEE Computer Society for outstanding contributions in the information processing field), Newton Technical Impact Award in EDA (test-of-time honor by ACM SIGDA and IEEE CEDA), the University Researcher Award (by Semiconductor Industry Association and Semiconductor Research Corporation to recognize lifetime research contributions), the EDAA Achievement Award (by European Design and Automation Association, for outstanding lifetime contributions to electronic design, automation and testing), the Intel Achievement Award (Intel’s highest honor), and the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. He and his students have published over 15 award-winning papers across 5 topic areas (technology, circuits, EDA, test, verification) at major venues including the Design Automation Conference, International Electron Devices Meeting, International Solid-State Circuits Conference, International Test Conference, Symposia on VLSI Technology/VLSI Circuits, and Formal Methods in Computer-Aided Design. Stanford undergraduates have honored him several times "for being important to them." He is a Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), and a Foreign Member of Academia Europaea. -
Stephen B. Montgomery
Stanford Medicine Professor of Pathology, Professor of Genetics and of Biomedical Data Science and, by courtesy, of Computer Science
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe focus on understanding the effects of genome variation on cellular phenotypes and cellular modeling of disease through genomic approaches such as next generation RNA sequencing in combination with developing and utilizing state-of-the-art bioinformatics and statistical genetics approaches. See our website at http://montgomerylab.stanford.edu/
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Kelli Moran-Miller, PhD
Clinical Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
BioDr. Kelli Moran-Miller joined Stanford in Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences in 2015. She is a licensed psychologist specializing in athlete mental health and sport and performance psychology. She also is a Certified Mental Performance Consultant with the Association of Applied Sport Psychology and a member of the US Olympic Committee registry. In her current role with Stanford Athletics (DAPER), she provides clinical and performance psychology services for varsity student-athletes, coaches, staff, and varsity sport teams. Prior to Stanford, she was the Director of Counseling and Sport Psychology - Athletics at the University of Iowa.
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Paula M. L. Moya
Danily C. and Laura Louise Bell Professor of the Humanities and Professor, by courtesy, of African and African American Studies and of Iberian and Latin American Cultures
BioMoya is currently the Ellen Andrews Wright Internal Fellow at the Stanford Humanities Center, where she is on leave for AY 2025-2026.
She is the author of The Social Imperative: Race, Close Reading, and Contemporary Literary Criticism (Stanford UP 2016) and Learning From Experience: Minority Identities, Multicultural Struggles (UC Press 2002). She has co-edited three collections of original essays including Doing Race: 21 Essays for the 21st Century (W.W. Norton, Inc. 2010), Identity Politics Reconsidered (Palgrave 2006) and Reclaiming Identity: Realist Theory and the Predicament of Postmodernism (UC Press 2000).
Her teaching and research focus on twentieth-century and early twenty-first century literary studies, feminist theory, critical theory, narrative theory, speculative fiction, interdisciplinary approaches to race and ethnicity, and Chicano/a and U.S. Latina/o studies.
At Stanford, Moya has served as the Faculty Director of the Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity (CCSRE), Director of the Research Institute of the Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity (CCSRE), Director of the Program of Modern Thought and Literature (MTL), Vice Chair of the Department of English, and the Director of the Undergraduate Program of CCSRE. She has been the faculty coordinator of several faculty-graduate student research networks sponsored by the Stanford Humanities Center, the Research Institute for the Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity, and Modern Thought and Literature. They include The Interdisciplinary Working Group in Critical Theory (2015-2016, 2012-2014), Feminist Theory (2007-08, 2002-03), Americanity / Coloniality / Modernity (2006-07), and How Do Identities Matter? (2003-06).
Moya was a co-PI of the Stanford Catalyst Motivating Mobility project, and team leader of the Perfecto Project, a fitness tracking app that combines narrative theory, social psychology, and UI/UX research to leverage culturally-specific narratives and artwork to encourage positive behavior change and healthier living in middle-aged and elderly Latinx populations. She was also a founding organizer and coordinating team member of The Future of Minority Studies research project (FMS), an inter-institutional, interdisciplinary, and multigenerational research project facilitating focused and productive discussions about the democratizing role of minority identity and participation in a multicultural society.
Moya has been a fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, a Clayman Institute Fellow, a CCSRE Faculty Research Fellow, and a Ford Foundation posdoctoral fellow. She has also been the recipient of the Dean’s Award for Distinguished Teaching and an Outstanding Chicana/o Faculty Member award. -
Julie Muccini, MS, OTR/L
Research Engineer, Rad/Musculoskeletal Imaging
BioJulie Muccini is an occupational therapist who has spent most of her clinical career working with individuals with neurological diagnoses. She is registered and licensed in California and is a member of the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) and the Occupational Therapy Association of California (OTAC). She is actively involved in research working with individuals post-stroke, neuromuscular diseases, and osteoarthritis; additional work includes assessing shoulder movements, sprinting, and balancing tasks; she works in the Human Performance Lab with an interdisciplinary team integrating biomechanics, biomedical engineering, physiology, psychology, and rehabilitation. Ms. Muccini received her bachelor of science in industrial engineering and operations research from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and her master of science in occupational therapy from Boston University. She started working at the hospital at Stanford in 1997 and transitioned to the Outpatient Neuro Rehab Clinic at the Stanford Neurosciences Health Center in 2014. In March 2021, Julie moved to the Stanford University School of Medicine to work in the Human Performance Lab at the Arrillaga Center for Sports and Recreation, ACSR, as a Wu Tsai Human Performance Alliance member.
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Jonathan N. Myers
Clinical Professor (Affiliated), Medicine - Med/Cardiovascular Medicine
BioDr. Myers is a Health Research Scientist at the Palo Alto VA Health Care System; a Clinical Professor at Stanford University (Affiliated), and a Senior Research Career Scientist Award recipient through the VA Rehabilitation Research and Development Program. His research has focused on primary and secondary prevention, and the clinical applications of exercise testing and rehabilitation in patients with cardiovascular disease and other chronic conditions. He has a lengthy history of studying the epidemiology of cardiopulmonary exercise test responses, physical activity patterns, and other lifestyle factors and their relation to health outcomes. He manages the Veterans Exercise Testing Study (VETS), an ongoing, prospective evaluation of Veteran subjects referred for exercise testing for clinical reasons, designed to address exercise test, clinical, and lifestyle factors and their association with health outcomes.
He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara, his master's degree from San Diego State University, and his doctorate from the University of Southern California. He has been a board member for many organizations including the American Heart Association (AHA), the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation (AACVPR), and the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), and serves on the editorial board for 9 journals. He is a recipient of the Michael Pollock Established Investigator Award through the AACVPR, a recipient of the Steven N Blair Award for excellence in physical activity research from the AHA Council on Epidemiology and Prevention and is the 2022 recipient of the American College of Sports Medicine Citation Award. He is a fellow of the AACVPR, ACSM, American College of Cardiology, and the AHA, and has authored and co-authored guidelines on exercise testing and rehabilitation for each of these organizations, including the 2021 editions of the ACSM and AACVPR guidelines. -
Hiromitsu (Hiro) Nakauchi
Professor of Genetics (Stem Cell)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsTranslation of discoveries in basic research into practical medical applications
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Hae Young Noh
Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering
BioHae Young Noh is a professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Her research introduced the new concept of “structures as sensors” to enable physical structures (e.g., buildings and vehicle frames) to be user- and environment-aware. In particular, these structures indirectly sense humans and surrounding environments through their structural responses (i.e., vibrations) by inferring the desired information (e.g., human behaviors, environmental conditions, heating and cooling system performance), instead of directly measuring the sensing targets with additional dedicated sensors (e.g., cameras, motion sensors). This concept brought a paradigm shift in how we view these structures and how the structures interact with us.
Traditionally, structures that we inhabit (such as buildings or vehicles) are considered as passive and unchanging objects that we need to monitor and control, utilizing a dense set of sensors to collect information. This has often been complicated by “noise” caused by the occupants and environments. For example, building vibrations induced by indoor and outdoor environmental and operational conditions (e.g., people walking around, traffic outside, heating system running, etc.), have been often seen as noise that needs to be removed in traditional building science and structural engineering; however, they are a rich source of information about structure, users, environment, and resources. Similarly, in vehicle engineering, researchers and engineers have been investigating control and dynamics to reduce vehicle vibration for safety and comfort. However, vibrations measured inside vehicles contain information about transportation infrastructure, vehicle itself, and driver.
Noh's work utilizes this “noise” to empower the structures with the ability to perceive and understand the information about users and surroundings using their own responses, and actively adopt and/or interact to enhance their sustainability and the occupants’ quality of life. Since she utilizes the structure itself as a sensing medium, information collection involves a simpler set of hardware that can be easily maintained throughout the structural lifetime. However, the analysis of data to separate the desired information becomes more challenging. This challenge is addressed through high-rate dynamic sensing and multi-source inferencing. Ultimately, her work aims to allow structural systems to become general sensing platforms that are easier and more practical to deploy and maintain in a long-term.
At Stanford University, Noh received her PhD and MS degrees in the CEE department and her second MS degree in Electrical Engineering. Noh earned her BS in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Cornell University. -
Garry Nolan
Rachford and Carlota Harris Professor
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Nolan's group uses high throughput single cell analysis technology cellular biochemistry to study autoimmunity, cancer, virology (influenza & Ebola), as well as understanding normal immune system function. Using advanced flow cytometric techniques such as Mass Cytometry, MIBI (ion beam imaging), CODEX and computational biology approaches, we focus on understanding disease processes at the single cell level. We have a strong interest in cancer immunotherapy and pathogen-host interactions.
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Douglas Noordsy
Clinical Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
BioDouglas L. Noordsy, MD, is Clinical Professor, Director of Lifestyle Psychiatry and co-founder of the Sports Psychology & Psychiatry clinic in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Noordsy was previously Professor of Psychiatry at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth. His research interests include effects of physical exercise on neurotrophic factors, brain volume and function and mental health and wellbeing. He is particularly interested in the role of physical exercise for prevention of progression of early psychosis and interactions between social and physical aspects of team sports. Dr. Noordsy is a member of the American College of Psychiatry, American College of Lifestyle Medicine and is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. He is a member of the editorial boards for Community Mental Health Journal and Mental Health & Physical Activity. Dr. Noordsy was recognized with the Exemplary Psychiatrist Award from the National Alliance on Mental Illness in 2001, and the Excellence in Leadership Award from the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at Stanford in 2018. He launched the Stanford Lifestyle & Sports Psychiatry Special Initiative of the Department of Psychiatry in 2024 and is seeking philanthropic partners.
https://med.stanford.edu/psychiatry/special-initiatives/lifestyle.html
https://med.stanford.edu/psychiatry/patient_care/lifestyle.html -
Anthony Norcia
Professor (Research) of Psychology, Emeritus
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsVision, development, functional imaging, systems analysis
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Paul Nuyujukian
Assistant Professor of Bioengineering and of Neurosurgery
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur group explores neuroengineering and its application to both basic and clinical neuroscience. Our goal is to develop brain-machine interfaces as a platform technology for a variety of brain-related medical conditions including stroke and epilepsy.
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Johanna O'Day
Scientific Program Manager - Education and Communications
BioI believe in using human-centered design and bioengineering to improve health. I have developed open-source tools that use wearables to better understand and improve mobility. I am passionate about building empathetic communities equipped with the skills and knowledge to make our world healthier, smarter, and more collaborative.
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Jelena Obradović
Professor of Education
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsAdaptation, resilience, and developmental psychopathology of disadvantaged children populations; Stress reactivity and biological sensitivity to contextual influences; Executive function and self-regulatory abilities; Effects of risk, adversity, and social status on children’s development.
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Michelle Odden
Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Population Health
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMultilevel - from cells to society - epidemiologic study of healthy aging
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Allison Okamura
Richard W. Weiland Professor in the School of Engineering and Professor of Mechanical Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research focuses on developing the principles and tools needed to realize advanced robotic and human-machine systems capable of physical interaction. Application areas include surgery, simulation and training, rehabilitation, prosthetics, neuromechanics, exploration of hazardous and remote environments (e.g. space), design, and education.
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Marily Oppezzo
Instructor, Medicine - Stanford Prevention Research Center
BioDr. Oppezzo is an Instructor of Medicine at the Stanford Prevention Research Center and head of the nutrition pillar at Stanford Lifestyle Medicine. She is a behavioral and learning scientist, dietitian, and exercise science interventionist. She earned her PhD in Educational Psychology from Stanford University, and holds a Master’s degree in Nutritional Science, and is board certified Lifestyle Medicine Professional.
Dr. Oppezzo's work combines her extensive training in nutrition, exercise science, and behavioral science to develop innovative interventions that empower individuals to adopt sustainable, healthy habits - integrating them into their already busy lives. With a focus on "minimal dose, maximal gains" she explores the best ways for people to adopt small, actionable changes for significant improvements in health and well-being. She is particularly interested in the impact of "exercise snacks"—short, accessible bouts of physical activity—on productivity, mood, and overall health. One of her key interventions, "Stronger," is designed to provide peri- and post-menopausal women with effective strength training that maximizes benefits while minimizing time commitment. -
Lars Osterberg, MD, MPH
Lecturer, Medicine - Primary Care and Population Health
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsBarriers to Humanism
Collaborative Faculty Development in Improving Humanism and Professionalism
Using Radiofrequency Identificaton technology to improve medication adherence
Impact of Learning Communities on Medical Education -
Danielle Mari Panelli
Instructor, Obstetrics & Gynecology - Maternal Fetal Medicine
BioDr. Danielle Panelli, MD, MS is an Instructor in Maternal–Fetal Medicine in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Stanford University School of Medicine. She completed Ob/Gyn residency training at Harvard (Brigham and Women’s Hospital/Mass General Hospital), and both fellowship training in Maternal–Fetal Medicine and a Masters Degree in Epidemiology and Clinical Research at Stanford.
Dr. Panelli is a clinician–scientist whose work bridges clinical and translational research to understand how stress and mental health shape pregnancy outcomes and postpartum recovery. Her research program focuses on psychobiologic markers of stress—including telomere dynamics and epigenetic aging—to advance precision medicine approaches for perinatal mental illness and pregnancy complications.
Clinically, she cares for routine and high-risk obstetric patients and integrates trauma-informed, evidence-based approaches into care delivery. She is committed to mentorship and education, serves as Director of Research for the Maternal–Fetal Medicine Fellowship, and contributes to national leadership and scholarship in perinatal mental health. -
Sergiu P. Pasca
Kenneth T. Norris, Jr. Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Bonnie Uytengsu and Family Director of the Stanford Brain Organogenesis Program
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsA critical challenge in understanding the intricate programs underlying development, assembly and dysfunction of the human brain is the lack of direct access to intact, functioning human brain tissue for detailed investigation by imaging, recording, and stimulation.
To address this, we are developing bottom-up approaches to generate and assemble, from multi-cellular components, human neural circuits in vitro and in vivo.
We introduced the use of instructive signals for deriving from human pluripotent stem cells self-organizing 3D cellular structures named brain region-specific spheroids/organoids. We demonstrated that these cultures, such as the ones resembling the cerebral cortex, can be reliably derived across many lines and experiments, contain synaptically connected neurons and non-reactive astrocytes, and can be used to gain mechanistic insights into genetic and environmental brain disorders. Moreover, when maintained as long-term cultures, they recapitulate an intrinsic program of maturation that progresses towards postnatal stages.
We also pioneered a modular system to integrate 3D brain region-specific organoids and study human neuronal migration and neural circuit formation in functional preparations that we named assembloids. We have actively applied these models in combination with studies in long-term ex vivo brain preparations to acquire a deeper understanding of human physiology, evolution and disease mechanisms.
We have carved a unique research program that combines rigorous in vivo and in vitro neuroscience, stem cell and molecular biology approaches to construct and deconstruct previously inaccessible stages of human brain development and function in health and disease.
We believe science is a community effort, and accordingly, we have been advancing the field by broadly and openly sharing our technologies with numerous laboratories around the world and organizing the primary research conference and the training courses in the area of cellular models of the human brain. -
Michele Lanpher Patel
Instructor, Medicine - Stanford Prevention Research Center
BioMichele L. Patel, PhD is an Instructor in the Stanford Prevention Research Center at the Stanford University School of Medicine. Trained as a clinical health psychologist, Dr. Patel conducts research to optimize scalable digital health interventions for adults with obesity. She leads clinical trials that test innovative strategies to address the critical challenge of suboptimal engagement in digital interventions.
Dr. Patel's research is supported by an NIH career development award (K23; 2022-2027). Her recent Spark trial investigated the most potent combination of self-monitoring strategies in a behavioral weight loss intervention among 176 adults with overweight or obesity. Results are expected to be published in 2026.
She is also testing other strategies to promote engagement, weight loss, and health. This includes the impact of easier vs. harder goals, and the effect of high-frequency, low-friction behavioral strategies. Her work leverages the Multiphase Optimization Strategy (MOST) to systematically identify intervention strategies that maximize effectiveness while minimizing patient burden.
Dr. Patel received her PhD in clinical psychology from Duke University. She completed her clinical internship at the VA Palo Alto with a specialization in behavioral medicine, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship (T32) at the Stanford Prevention Research Center. She currently serves as the Chair of the Optimization of Behavioral and Biobehavioral Interventions special interest group in the Society of Behavioral Medicine.
Primary Research Interests:
-- Optimizing digital interventions for obesity treatment and prevention
-- Leveraging behavioral science to create lower-burden self-monitoring strategies to improve engagement and outcomes
-- Identifying psychosocial factors (including health literacy and self-efficacy) that influence treatment success
Methodological Expertise:
-- Randomized clinical trials, including factorial designs and embedded trials
-- Systematic reviews
-- Signal detection analysis -
Marco Perez
Associate Professor of Medicine (Cardiovascular Medicine)
BioDr. Marco Perez's research goal is to better understand the fundamental causes of cardiovascular disease through the study of genetics and epidemiology. His group studies the genetic variations and environmental exposures that are associated with conditions such as atrial fibrillation and heart failure. He has led the studies of atrial fibrillation in Women's Health Initiative, one of the largest nation-wide population-based cohorts. He is currently conducting a large study monitoring for silent or asymptomatic atrial fibrillation in women from the WHI randomized to exercise intervention, and was co-PI of the Apple Heart Study, a clinical trial that validated the ability of a smartwatch to detect atrial fibrillation. He is now PI of the Clinical Coordinating Center at Stanford for the REACT-AF which is a clinical trial to evaluate efficacy and safety of a "pill-in-the pocket" approach to anticoagulation for AF using a smartwatch. He is interested in understanding the paradox that atrial fibrillation is less common in African Americans and Hispanics, despite a greater burden of risk factors such as hypertension. As director of the Stanford Inherited Arrhythmia Clinic, he evaluates families with rare inherited arrhythmias associated with sudden death such as Long QT and Brugada Syndromes and explores their links with novel genes. He also studies the genetic causes of very early onset atrial fibrillation. He also studies how best to use the electrocardiogram and imaging modalities using Machine Learning techniques to identify patients at risk for cardiovascular disease. Dr. Perez receives funding from the NIH/NHLBI, Apple Inc., Janssen and the Colson Foundation.
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Suzanne Pfeffer
Emma Pfeiffer Merner Professor of Medical Sciences
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe major focus of our research is to understand the molecular basis of inherited Parkinson's Disease (PD). We focus on the LRRK2 kinase that is inappropriately activated in PD and how it phosphorylates Rab GTPases, blocking the formation of primary cilia in specific regions of the brain. The absence of primary cilia renders cells unable to carry out Hedgehog signaling that is critical for neuroprotective pathways that sustain dopamine neurons.
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Jennifer Pien MD
Clinical Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
BioJennifer H. Pien is a Clinical Associate Professor through the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford University. She is the Director of The Pegasus Physician Writers, Founder of The Pegasus Review, and is a founding faculty editor for the Oxford Review of Books x Stanford collaboration. She also serves on the Advisory Board for The Bellevue Literary Press and the Stanford School of Medicine Medical Humanities Fellowship. Jennifer is represented by Amy Collins of Talcott Notch. She is the author of Healing the Healers, Johns Hopkins University Press, forthcoming 2025 and is the Co-Founder of Hesperides Literary Agency.
In addition to her work in Medical Humanities, her interests include advocacy for adults with developmental disabilities where she cofounded Puente Clinic through the San Mateo County Medical System, an innovative dev. disabilities subspecialty clinic. She serves on the Regional Advisory Committee to the California State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Currently, her clinical focus is on physician well-being through the WellConnect team. -
Russell Poldrack
Albert Ray Lang Professor of Psychology and, by courtesy, of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur lab uses the tools of cognitive neuroscience to understand how decision making, executive control, and learning and memory are implemented in the human brain. We also develop neuroinformatics tools and resources to help researchers make better sense of data.
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Ada Poon
Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur research focuses on providing theoretical foundations and engineering platforms for realizing electronics that seamlessly integrate with the body. Such systems will allow precise recording or modulation of physiological activity, for advancing basic scientific discovery and for restoring or augmenting biological functions for clinical applications.
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Lisa Post
Clinical Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
BioDr. Lisa Post, Ph.D. is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in the treatment of anxiety, depression and adjustment disorders in adults. She has been a practicing clinician at Stanford Hospital and Clinics since 1993. Since 2000, she has been Director of a clinical program for Stanford Varsity Athletes and for nine years has been the Team Clinician for the San Francisco 49ers. Her primary interest are in the treatment of high performing individuals and in stress management.
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Manu Prakash
Associate Professor of Bioengineering, Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment and Associate Professor, by courtesy, of Oceans
BioWe use interdisciplinary approaches including theory and experiments to understand how computation is embodied in biological matter. Examples include cognition in single cell protists and morphological computing in animals with no neurons and origins of complex behavior in multi-cellular systems. Broadly, we invent new tools for studying non-model organisms with significant focus on life in the ocean - addressing fundamental questions such as how do cells sense pressure or gravity? Finally, we are dedicated towards inventing and distributing “frugal science” tools to democratize access to science (previous inventions used worldwide: Foldscope, Abuzz), diagnostics of deadly diseases like malaria and convening global citizen science communities to tackle planetary scale environmental challenges such as mosquito surveillance or plankton surveillance by citizen sailors mapping the ocean in the age of Anthropocene.
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Carla Pugh, MD, PhD
Thomas Krummel Professor
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Technology Enabled Clinical Improvement (T.E.C.I.) Center is a multidisciplinary team of researchers dedicated to the design and implementation of advanced engineering technologies that facilitate data acquisition relating to clinical performance.
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Stephen Quake
Lee Otterson Professor in the School of Engineering and Professor of Bioengineering, of Applied Physics and, by courtesy, of Physics
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsSingle molecule biophysics, precision force measurement, micro and nano fabrication with soft materials, integrated microfluidics and large scale biological automation.
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Nilam Ram
Professor of Communication and of Psychology
BioNilam Ram studies the dynamic interplay of psychological and media processes and how they change from moment-to-moment and across the life span.
Nilam’s research grows out of a history of studying change. After completing his undergraduate study of economics, he worked as a currency trader, frantically tracking and trying to predict the movement of world markets as they jerked up, down and sideways. Later, he moved on to the study of human movement, kinesiology, and eventually psychological processes - with a specialization in longitudinal research methodology. Generally, Nilam studies how short-term changes (e.g., processes such as learning, information processing, emotion regulation, etc.) develop across the life span, and how longitudinal study designs contribute to generation of new knowledge. Current projects include examinations of age-related change in children’s self- and emotion-regulation; patterns in minute-to-minute and day-to-day progression of adolescents’ and adults’ emotions; and change in contextual influences on well-being during old age. He is developing a variety of study paradigms that use recent developments in data science and the intensive data streams arriving from social media, mobile sensors, and smartphones to study change at multiple time scales. -
Ashwin Ramayya, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery
BioDr. Ramayya is an assistant professor in the Department of Neurosurgery. He specializes in the treatment of patients with chronic pain, movement disorders, epilepsy, and traumatic brain injury. His research program will focus on understanding brain mechanisms underlying pain experience and how to alleviate pain using brain stimulation.
Dr. Ramayya specializes in neuromodulation, including deep brain stimulation (DBS), spinal cord stimulation, MRI-guided laser therapy, and focused ultrasound. Dr. Ramayya obtained his MD and PhD from the University of Pennsylvania, where he also completed his neurosurgery residency and a fellowship in stereotactic and functional neurosurgery.
His research efforts have identified neural substrates underlying learning, memory, and decision-making using computational behavioral modeling, neurophysiology, and neuroimaging.
Dr. Ramayya has published in numerous peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Neuroscience, NeuroImage, and Cerebral Cortex. He has also presented his work at national and international meetings, including those for the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and the Pan Philadelphia Neurosurgery Conference. -
Babak Razavi, MD, PhD
Clinical Associate Professor, Adult Neurology
BioDr. Razavi's clinical interests are in medically refractory epilepsies and using high density EEG (electroencephalogram) for better localization of seizure foci. His research areas include using advanced digital signal processing and engineering techniques for analyzing EEG and using seizures as a model for understanding consciousness.
Dr. Razavi is the Founder and Director of DEL - Distributed EEG Lab. DEL's vision is to make EEG easy as 1, 2, 3. We turn complexity into simplicity. We are distributed in time and space. DEL was founded in the spirit of cloud computing, networking, and the notion that research in collaboration is more exciting and fruitful than in isolation. Everyone contributes - no matter how small; everyone wins - no matter how big. It was inspired by the mentorship of Dr. Kimford Meador and Dr. Robert Fisher. All you need is access to a computer and the internet.
DEL is the ideal collaborative environment for students (undergraduate and graduate) and faculty who would like to: (1) apply ready-to-use advanced analytical techniques to test specific hypotheses in cognition, neuroscience and epilepsy, and (2) develop and test new algorithms for analyzing EEG and other biological signals. -
Byron Reeves
Paul C. Edwards Professor of Communication and Professor, by courtesy, of Education
BioByron Reeves, PhD, is the Paul C. Edwards Professor of Communication at Stanford and
Professor (by courtesy) in the Stanford School of Education. Byron has a long history of
experimental research on the psychological processing of media, and resulting responses and
effects. He has studied how media influence attention, memory and emotional responses and has
applied the research in the areas of speech dialogue systems, interactive games, advanced
displays, social robots, and autonomous cars. Byron has recently launched (with Stanford
colleagues Nilam Ram and Thomas Robinson) the Human Screenome Project (Nature, 2020),
designed to collect moment-by-moment changes in technology use across applications, platforms
and screens.
At Stanford, Byron has been Director of the Center for the Study of Language and Information,
and Co-Director of the H-STAR Institute (Human Sciences and Technologies Advanced
Research), and he was the founding Director of mediaX at Stanford, a university-industry
program launched in 2001 to facilitate discussion and research at the intersection of academic
and applied interests. Byron has worked at Microsoft Research and with several technology
startups, and has been involved with media policy at the FTC, FCC, US Congress and White
House. He is an elected Fellow of the International Communication Association, and recipient of ICA Fellows book award for The Media Equation (with Prof. Clifford Nass), and the Novim Foundation Epiphany Science and Society Award. Byron’s PhD in Communication is from Michigan State University. -
Allan L. Reiss
Howard C. Robbins Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Professor of Radiology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy laboratory, the Center for Interdisciplinary Brain Sciences Research (CIBSR), focuses on multi-level scientific study of individuals with typical and atypical brain structure and function. Data are obtained from genetic analyses, structural and functional neuroimaging studies, assessment of endocrinological status, neurobehavioral assessment, and analysis of pertinent environmental factors. Our overarching focus is to model how brain disorders arise and to develop disease-specific treatments.
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Anthony J. Ricci, PhD
Edward C. and Amy H. Sewall Professor in the School of Medicine and Professor of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery (OHNS) and, by courtesy of Molecular and Cellular Physiology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe study hearing from biophysical, molecular and signal processing perspectives. One focus is mechanotransduction, where sound is converted into an electrical signal. As a major site for dysfunction, a more detailed understand will provide a means toward intervention. We develop new antibiotics to limit ototoxicity. We investigate drug delivery methods from surgical approaches to slow release systems, including gene therapy tools. We are studying cognitive decline following hearing loss.
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Laura Roberts, MD, MA
Katharine Dexter McCormick and Stanley McCormick Memorial Professor
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Roberts has performed numerous empirical studies of contemporary ethics issues in medicine and health policy and has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Energy, the National Alliance of Schizophrenia and Depression, the Arnold P. Gold Foundation, and other private and public foundations.
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Thomas Robinson
The Irving Schulman, M.D. Professor of Child Health, Professor of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center) and, by courtesy, of Epidemiology and Population Health
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Robinson originated the solution-oriented research paradigm and directs the Stanford Solutions Science Lab. He is known for his pioneering obesity prevention and treatment research, including the concept of stealth interventions. His research applies social cognitive models of behavior change to behavioral, social, environmental and policy interventions for children and families in real world settings, making the results relevant for informing clinical and public health practice and policy.
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William H. Robinson, MD PhD
James W. Raitt, M.D. Professor
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur lab investigates the molecular mechanisms of and develops therapies to treat autoimmune and rheumatic diseases, with a focus on rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, multiple sclerosis, and osteoarthritis.
The overriding objectives of our laboratory are:
1. To elucidate the mechanisms underlying autoimmune and rheumatic diseases.
2. To investigate the role of innate immune inflammation in osteoarthritis.
3. To develop novel diagnostics and therapeutics -
Fatima Rodriguez
Associate Professor of Medicine (Cardiovascular Medicine)
BioFatima Rodriguez, MD, MPH serves as the Vice Chair of Clinical Research (Department of Medicine), Section Chief of Preventive Cardiology, and Associate Director of the Center for Digital Health at Stanford University. She received her medical degree from Harvard Medical School and a Master of Public Health from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Dr. Rodriguez completed her internal medicine residency at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and fellowship in cardiovascular medicine at Stanford.
Dr. Rodriguez specializes in the prevention and management of cardiovascular disease, with clinical expertise in coronary artery disease and inherited lipid disorders. Her research focuses on cardiovascular disease prevention and health promotion, leveraging digital tools to improve guideline-based care, and using AI-enabled approaches for early detection of atherosclerosis. -
Eugene Y. Roh, MD
Clinical Associate Professor, Orthopaedic Surgery
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsTherapeutic Efficacy of biologic treatments(Platelet Rich Plasma, adipose, mfat, bone marrow, stem cell) in OA and tendonitis
Application of musculoskeletal ultrasound for sports medicine and other musculoskeletal disease.
AI-based musculoskeletal diagnosis and treatment in sports, OA and tendinitis -
Christian Rose, MD
Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine (Adult Clinical/Academic)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsUncertainty permeates the practice of emergency medicine. I want to answer the question: what do you do when you don't know what to do?
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Brian Rutt
Professor of Radiology (Radiological Sciences Lab), Emeritus
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research interests center on MRI research, including high-field and high-resolution MRI technology development as well as applications of advanced MRI techniques to studying the brain, cardiovascular system and cancer.
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Marc R. Safran, MD
Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Safrans practice focuses on arthroscopic management of hip problems as well as articular cartilage regeneration, shoulder surgery and athletic shoulder and elbow problems. He is actively involved in research in these areas.
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Manish Saggar
Associate Professor (Research) of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Interdisciplinary Brain Science Research)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe are a computational neuropsychiatry lab dedicated to developing computational methods to better understand brain’s overall dynamical organization in healthy and patient populations. We employ algorithms from a wide range of fields, including Applied Mathematics, Econometrics, Machine Learning, Biophysics, and Network Science.
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Shima Salehi
Assistant Professor (Research) of Education
BioShima Salehi is a Research Assistant Professor at Stanford Graduate School of Education, and the director of IDEAL research lab, the research component of Stanford IDEAL initiative to promote inclusivity, diversity, equity and access in learning communities. Her research focuses on how to use different instructional practices to teach science and engineering more effectively and inclusively. For effective science and engineering education, Dr. Salehi has studied effective scientific problem-solving and developed empirical framework for main problem-solving practices to train students in. Based on these findings, she has designed instructional activities to provide students with explicit opportunities to learn these problem-solving practices. These activities have been implemented in different science and engineering courses. For Inclusive science and engineering, she examines different barriers for equity in STEM education and through what instructional and/or institutional changes they can be addressed. Her recent works focus on what are the underlying mechanisms for demographic performance gaps in STEM college education, and what instructional practices better serve students from different demographic backgrounds. Salehi holds a PhD in Learning Sciences and a PhD minor in Psychology from Stanford University, and received a B.Sc. degree in Electrical Engineering from Sharif University of Technology, Iran. She is the founder of KhanAcademyFarsi, a non-profit educational organization which has provided service to Farsi-speaking students, particularly in under-privileged areas.
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Jacinda Sampson
Clinical Professor, Adult Neurology
BioDr. Jacinda Sampson received her MD and a PhD in biochemistry from University of Alabama at Birmingham, and completed her neurology residency and neurogenetics fellowship at the University of Utah. She served at Columbia University Medical Center prior to joining Stanford University Medical Center in 2015. Her areas of interest include myotonic dystrophies, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and neurogenetic disorders such as neurofibromatosis, hereditary spastic paraparesis, spinocerebellar ataxia, among others. She is interested in clinical trials for treatment of neurogenetic disorders, and in the clinical application of next-generation genomic sequencing to genetic testing.
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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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Clea Sarnquist, DrPH, MPH
Clinical Professor, Pediatrics - Infectious Diseases
Clinical Professor (By courtesy), Epidemiology and Population HealthBioDr. Sarnquist focuses on applied teaching and research on the development, implementation and evaluation of interventions to decrease gender-based violence, improve mental health, and prevent HIV infection, especially among adolescents and children. She is particularly interested in rights-based approaches that tackle the complex interplay of factors that lead to poor health for many children and families. All of her work is applied, with direct links health practice and policy, and usually performed in conjunction with non-governmental organization and government partners. She works both globally and in the U.S., with a focus on sub-Saharan Africa. She is also a medical educator, directing the scholarly concentrations program of the pediatric residency at Stanford, co-directing the global health concentration for residents, and teaching graduate and undergraduate courses in global health with a focus on children and women’s health.
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Elizabeth Schumann
Billie Bennett Achilles Director of Keyboard Programs and Assistant Professor (Teaching) of Music
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsAs a concert pianist, I deeply value the rich traditions of classical music. My passion lies in blending this artistry with scientific insights from neuroscience to biomechanics. This isn't solely about music; it's about applying lessons about optimal practice and peak performance to life's broader canvas. Through my research, I strive to evolve musical training, paving the way for the next generation of dedicated and resilient performers.
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Daniel Schwartz
Dean of the Graduate School of Education and the Nomellini & Olivier Professor of Educational Technology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsInstructional methods, transfer of learning and assessment, mathematical development, teachable agents, cognition, and cognitive neuroscience.
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Kawin Setsompop
Professor of Radiology (Radiological Sciences Laboratory) and, by courtesy, of Electrical Engineering
BioKawin Setsompop is a 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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Nigam H. Shah, MBBS, PhD
Professor of Medicine (Biomedical Informatics) and of Biomedical Data Science
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe answer clinical questions using aggregate patient data at the bedside. The Informatics Consult Service (https://greenbutton.stanford.edu/) put this idea in action and led to the creation of Atropos Health. We build predictive models that allow taking mitigating actions, keeping the human in the loop.
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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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Carla Shatz
Sapp Family Provostial Professor and Professor of Biology and of Neurobiology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe goal of research in the Shatz Laboratory is to discover how brain circuits are tuned up by experience during critical periods of development both before and after birth by elucidating cellular and molecular mechanisms that transform early fetal and neonatal brain circuits into mature connections. To discover mechanistic underpinnings of circuit tuning, the lab has conducted functional screens for genes regulated by neural activity and studied their function for vision, learning and memory.
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Kevin Shea
Chambers-Okamura Endowed Professor of Pediatric Orthopaedics
BioKevin G. Shea, MD is at Stanford University. He grew up in Montana and California, graduated from the University of Notre Dame, UCLA School of Medicine, and completed his orthopaedic residency at the University of Utah. His advanced training includes pediatric orthopaedics at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego, AO Fellowship in Bern Switzerland with Dr. Ganz (Hip), Dr. Diego Fernandez (Trauma), and Dr. Hans Staubli (sports), Ilizarov Training in Lecco, Italy. He has done the AOSSM South American Traveling Sports Medicine Fellowship, and education in Russia and former Soviet Bloc countries. Most of his early career was in Boise, Idaho. Dr. Shea is a founding member of the PRISM Society (Pediatric Research in Sports Medicine) and the ROCK (Research in Osteochondritis Dissecans of the Knee) Multi-center Study Group, and the SCORE (Sports Cohort Outcomes Research ) Multi-Center Registry for pediatric sports. He has authored more than 300 scientific papers and chapters. His clinic research interests include cartilage and ligament disorders, using pediatric cadaveric tissue and surgical 3D simulations to develop surgeries and improve outcomes for procedures that avoid damage to growth plates. He has years of experience with performance, quality improvement, value, and he worked extensively with the AAOS Quality/Clinical Practice Guideline Committees. He is one of the POSNA members to launch the POSNA Safe Surgery Program. He is a national quality leader in health care with interests in patient safety, risk reduction, and improving value in health care with clinician integration into supply chain. He is an avid cyclist, trail runner, hiker, and spends as much time outside as possible, with his partner Lonnie and their children Beck and Cooper.
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Krishna Shenoy
Member, Bio-X
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe conduct neuroscience, neuroengineering and translational research to better understand how the brain controls movement, and to design medical systems to assist people with paralysis. These are referred to as brain-machine interfaces (BMIs), brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) and intra-cortical neural prostheses. We conduct this research as part of our Neural Prosthetic Systems Lab (NPSL) and our Neural Prosthetics Translational Lab (NPTL), which I co-direct with Prof. Jaimie Henderson, M.D.
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Seth Lawrence Sherman, MD
Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research focuses on ways to augment tissue healing, improve human performance, and prevent musculoskeletal injuries. Approaching these challenges through parallel basic science and clinical pathways, our team works from the “bedside to the bench and back to the bedside”, identifying areas of clinical need to deliver evidence-based solutions for patients.
We collaborates with orthopaedic surgeons, non-surgical physicians, and researchers within bioengineering, human performance, and musculoskeletal imaging across the Stanford campus. The team is developing novel methods to accurately record human movement (including wearable technology, phone-based systems), rapid MRI imaging protocols, and exploring the use of biomarkers to track injury and recovery. This research builds on my earlier work, which utilized portable, inexpensive software for Microsoft Kinect to detect knee injury risk in youth athletes performing a drop vertical jump test. The team’s multifaceted goal is: 1) develop innovative methods to screen for injury risk (i.e. youth athlete non-contact ACL), 2) create targeted intervention programs to reduce risk, 3) enhance athletic performance; and 4) improve accuracy of return to play testing following injury/surgery (i.e. clinical evaluation, biomarkers, functional tests, imaging analysis for healing).
In the laboratory,our team investigates cellular and molecular deficiencies in tissue types including tendon, ligament, articular cartilage, and meniscus. By understanding aberrant pathways leading to tissue injury, they can identify innovative therapeutic targets for intervention. In collaboration with the Genetic Engineering and Synthetic Biology laboratories, Dr. Sherman’s research has explored the role of orthobiologic agents such as platelet rich plasma (PRP) and bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC) for tissue healing in patella tendinopathy (the breakdown of collagen in a tendon). Our lab is also investigating the use of CBD for musculoskeletal applications as an alternative to commonly used local anesthetics and cortisone derivatives. In my earlier work, we researched the cellular toxicity of such applications.
In addition to basic science research, I have helped to build a Sports Medicine clinical research team that includes several full-time clinical research coordinators, residents, fellows, and students. The team collects prospective outcomes on their patients using a novel data collection platform called Patient IQ. The group is part of the JUPITER study which is the largest, multicenter study ever assembled in patellofemoral instability. They are additionally planning to enroll in FDA-approved clinical studies investigating pioneering strategies for knee cartilage restoration, joint preservation, and orthobiologic injections for osteoarthritis. Recent clinical publications explore outcomes in meniscus preservation and transplantation, medial patellofemoral ligament reconstruction, osteochondral allograft and matrix-induced autologous chondrocyte implantation (MACI), and surgical augmentation using PRP/BMAC. The clinical research team actively reports results of non-surgical and surgical interventions to continue to introduce new knowledge to the field, with the goal of improved patient outcome. -
Sidhartha Sinha
Assistant Professor of Medicine (Gastroenterology and Hepatology)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThere are two primary and overlapping emphases of my research, both of which are driven and united by needs-based innovation and translational potential:
(1) Understanding the microenvironment of the inflamed versus normal gut in order to identify better therapeutic targets for people with immune-¬mediated GI disorders. Here, our investigations include understanding the influence and interactions of pharmacologic and dietary interventions on gut microbiome/metabolomic changes and the host immune response. In the context of providing patients with new understanding and solutions for their disease, I have led and advised on the design of both pilot and large clinical trials (including new FDA approved therapies) for anti-inflammatory therapies;
(2) Applying novel approaches and technologies (including natural language processing, computer vision, and reinforcement learning) to identify and address unmet clinical needs. In this area we have ongoing and published efforts in my lab to validate and develop solutions to pressing clinical needs. We have developed/led new drug delivery technologies with a multidisciplinary team that have shown strong potential in ongoing human IBD clinical trials. My lab has utilized both supervised and unsupervised approaches to analyze social media discourse and unstructured data sets for identifying patient needs that are rarely addressed in clinical settings. We have gained insights into patient perceptions around preventative health interventions, such as health screening and diet, including the dearth of evidence-based dietary recommendations to treat IBD (despite strong patient desire for solutions in this domain). -
Matthew Smuck, MD
Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsI direct the Wearable Health Lab at Stanford, investigating medical applications of mobile technology to improve musculoskeletal and neurologic disease detection, treatment and prevention.
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Michael Snyder, Ph.D.
Stanford W. Ascherman Professor of Genetics
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur laboratory use different omics approaches to study a) regulatory networks, b) intra- and inter-species variation which differs primarily at the level of regulatory information c) human health and disease. For the later we have established integrated Personal Omics Profiling (iPOP), an analysis that combines longitudinal analyses of genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic, metabolomic, DNA methylation, microbiome and autoantibody profiles to monitor healthy and disease states
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Hyongsok Tom Soh
W. M. Keck Foundation Professor of Electrical Engineering, Professor of Radiology (Diagnostic Sciences Laboratory) and of Bioengineering
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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Leina'ala Song, MD
Clinical Assistant Professor, Orthopaedic Surgery
BioDr. Song is a double board-certified sports medicine physician with Stanford Health Care Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine. She is a clinical assistant professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Song completed fellowship training in orthopaedics and sports medicine at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle, Washington.
Dr. Song specializes in managing a wide range of sports and musculoskeletal injuries. She performs ultrasound-guided injections including corticosteroid, hyaluronic acid, and PRP. She is also skilled at using high-resolution ultrasound to perform other minimally invasive interventions, such as ultrasound guided percutaneous tenotomies and peripheral nerve hydrodissections. She is currently the primary team physician for numerous Division 1 athletic teams at Stanford University, including men’s volleyball, women’s volleyball, beach volleyball, lacrosse, open weight crew, light weight crew, softball, artistic swim, and sailing.
Dr. Song’s research interests include the long-term outcomes of percutaneous ultrasound-guided tenotomy, orthobiologics, and the health of the female athlete. She has taught sports medicine fellows as well as primary care residents. She has provided sideline coverage at multiple athletic events, as well as pre-participation screenings for professional teams such as the Seattle Seahawks and Seattle Seawolves. -
Justin L. Sonnenburg
Alex and Susie Algard Endowed Professor
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe goals of the Sonnenburg Lab research program are to (i) elucidate the basic mechanisms that underlie dynamics within the gut microbiota and (ii) devise and implement strategies to prevent and treat disease in humans via the gut microbiota. We investigate the principles that govern gut microbial community function and interaction with the host using a broad range of experimental approaches including studies of microbiomes in diverse human cohorts.
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David Spiegel
Jack, Lulu and Sam Willson Professor of Medicine
On Partial Leave from 10/01/2025 To 05/15/2026Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Spiegel's research program involves mind/body interactions, including cancer progression, the response to traumatic stress, and the effect of hypnosis on the perception of pain and anxiety.
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Randall Stafford
Professor of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsAs Director of the SPRC Program on Prevention Outcomes and Practices, my work focuses on cardiovascular disease treatment and prevention, the adoption of new technology and practices, and patterns of physician practice, particularly medication prescribing. Specific interests include measuring and improving the quality of outpatient care, disparities in health care by race, gender, age and socioeconomic status, and interventions to improve prevention outcomes.
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Jeremy Stanek
Clinical Assistant Professor, Orthopaedic Surgery
BioDr. Jeremy Stanek is a sports medicine physiatrist who specializes in performing arts medicine, sports medicine, and musculoskeletal medicine. He enjoys treating musicians, dancers, athletes of all abilities, and anyone who wants to become or stay active. He performs diagnostic ultrasound as well as ultrasound-guided and fluoroscopic-guided procedures.
Dr. Stanek grew up on a small farm near the town of Qulin, Missouri. He received degrees in music performance from the University of Missouri and University of New Mexico and had a career as a professional trumpet player until developing focal dystonia (musicians' dystonia). Wanting to utilize his experience and education as a performer, he chose medicine as his next career. He graduated from the University of Missouri School of Medicine then completed his intern year at the Medical College of Wisconsin, followed by advanced residency training in physiatry (physical medicine & rehabilitation) at the University of Missouri. In 2018, Dr. Stanek completed a fellowship in sports medicine at Washington University in St. Louis, where he also was a provider in the Medical Program for Performing Artists, treating members of the St. Louis Ballet and his former colleagues in the St. Louis Symphony and community bands and orchestras. He has also provided coverage for a variety of events such as MMA fights, endurance sports events, and was a team physician for Washington University Athletics.
He conducts research in performing arts medicine and has given numerous conference presentations. Additionally, he enjoys speaking with professional and student musicians/dancers to educate them on arts medicine and avoiding injuries. In his free time, he enjoys working on old cars, baking, and participating in triathlons and other endurance sports. -
Claude Steele
Lucie Stern Professor in the Social Sciences, Emeritus
BioClaude M. Steele is an American social psychologist and a Professor of Psychology at Stanford University.
He is best known for his work on stereotype threat and its application to minority student academic performance. His earlier work dealt with research on the self (e.g., self-image, self- affirmation) as well as the role of self-regulation in addictive behaviors. In 2010, he released his book, Whistling Vivaldi and Other Clues to How Stereotypes Affect Us, summarizing years of research on stereotype threat and the underperformance of minority students in higher education.
He holds B.A. in Psychology from Hiram College, an M.A. in Social Psychology from Ohio State University, and a Ph.D. in Social Psychology and Statistical Psychology from Ohio State University.
He is elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Sciences, the National Science Board, the
National Academy of Education, and the American Philosophical Society.
He currently serves as a trustee of the Russell Sage Foundation and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and as a Fellow for both the American Institutes for Research and the American Academy of Political and Social Science.
He has served in several major academic leadership positions as the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost at UC Berkeley, the I. James Quillen Dean for the School of Education at Stanford University, and as the 21st Provost of Columbia University. Past roles also include serving as the President of the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, as the President of the Western Psychological Association, and as a member of the Board of Directors of the American Psychological Society.
Professor Steele holds Honorary Doctorates from Yale University, Northwestern University, University of Chicago, University of Michigan, DePaul University and
Claremont Graduate University. -
Kristen K. Steenerson, MD
Clinical Associate Professor, Otolaryngology (Head and Neck Surgery)
Clinical Assistant Professor, Adult NeurologyBioKristen K. Steenerson, MD is a board-certified neurologist with fellowship training in vestibular neurology. She graduated cum laude from Claremont McKenna College, received her MD from the University of Utah, completed neurology residency at Mayo Clinic Arizona, and fellowship at Barrow Neurological Insitute. She directs the Vestibular Balance Disorders Program of the Stanford Balance Center. She has joint appointments in the departments of Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery and Neurology & Neurological Sciences at Stanford. Her clinical interests include vestibular migraine, benign paroxysmal positional vertigo, Ménière's disease, and international neurology.
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Marcia L. Stefanick, Ph.D.
Professor (Research) of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center), of Obstetrics and Gynecology and, by courtesy, of Epidemiology and Population Health
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMarcia L. Stefanick, Ph.D is a Professor of Medicine Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and by courtesy, Professor of Epidemiology and Population Health at Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Stefanick’s research focuses on chronic disease prevention (particularly, heart disease, breast cancer, osteoporosis, and dementia) in both women and men. She is currently the Principal Investigator the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) Extension Study, having been the PI of the Stanford Clinical Center of the landmark WHI Clinical Trials and Observational Study since 1994 and Chair of the WHI Steering and Executive Committees from 1998-2011, as well as PI of the WHI Strong and Healthy (WHISH) Trial which is testing the hypothesis that a DHHS-based physical activity intervention, being delivered to a multi-ethnic cohort of about 24,000 WHI participants across the U.S., aged 68-99 when the trial started in 2015, will reduce major cardiovascular events over 8 years, compared to an equal number of “usual activity” controls. Dr. Stefanick is also PI of the Osteoporotic Study of Men (MrOS) which is continuing to conduct clinical assessments of bone and body composition in survivors of an original cohort of nearly 6000 men aged 65 and over in 2001. As founding Director of the Stanford Women’s Health and Sex Differences in Medicine (WHSDM, “wisdom”) Center, she plays a major role in promoting research and teaching on Sex and Gender in Human Physiology and Disease, Women’s Health and Queer Health and Medicine. Dr. Stefanick also plays major leadership roles at the Stanford School of Medicine, including as co-leader of the Population Sciences Program of the Stanford Cancer Institute, Stanford’s NCI-funded comprehensive cancer center.
Dr. Stefanick obtained her B.A. in biology from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA (1974), then pursued her interest in hormone and sex difference research at the Oregon Regional Primate Research Center, after which she obtained her PhD in Physiology at Stanford University, focusing on reproductive physiology and neuroendocrinology, with exercise physiology as a secondary focus. Her commitment to human research led to a post-doctoral fellowship in Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at the Stanford Prevention Research Center, which has been her academic home for nearly 40 years. -
Lars Steinmetz
Dieter Schwarz Foundation Endowed Professor
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Steinmetz lab develops genomic technologies to study the genetic basis of complex phenotypes, the mechanisms of gene regulation, and the molecular systems underpinning disease. We’re leveraging biological insights across scales and organisms to predict, diagnose, treat and ultimately prevent disease.
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Kate Stevens
Professor of Radiology (Musculoskeletal Imaging)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsSports medicine - imaging of sports injuries in athletes and ultrasound-guided therapy.
Clinical applications of new MRI pulse sequences.
Metal suppression MRI around orthopedic implants.
Imaging and guided therapy in rheumatology. -
Wenfei Sun
Assistant Professor of Medicine (Endocrinology)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe explore neural circuits regulating memory and systemic metabolism, integrating neuroscience and metabolic biology to tackle cognitive decline and metabolic disorders.
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Vidyani Suryadevara
Instructor, Genetics
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsA Bioengineer by training, she has a breadth of experiences across different scientific disciplines including pulmonary diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, and musculoskeletal disorders, wherein her research projects involved unraveling signaling mechanism behind the disease in order to identify new therapeutic targets and developing imaging modalities for early diagnosis of the disease, thus eventually improving the quality of life in patients. Her current work has been centered around age-associated pathophysiologies like osteoarthritis and Alzheimer's Disease. Her research currently focuses on the clinical translation of a novel noninvasive multimodality imaging approach to detect senescence in osteoarthritis and Alzheimer's Disease and understand the senescence biology in these age-associated diseases.
She has led teams of renowned senescence scientists across the US to develop expert recommendations for biomarkers for senescence. She is also a faculty fellow in the Center for Innovation at Global Health, wherein her focus is to develop region-specific lifestyle interventions to prevent dementia. -
Katrin J Svensson
Associate Professor of Pathology
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMolecular metabolism
Protein biochemistry
Cell biology and function
Animal physiology
