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Research

Two areas that have always been of interest to me are the mechanics of machines and the wonders of nature. My interest in mechanics, first beginning in a youth spent taking apart machines like lawn mowers, has intersected with my fascination with nature at the cellular and molecular levels. Here I will present how I have been intersecting mechanical engineering with biology. My lab approaches this intersection by envisioning cells and molecules as "systems" that can be investigated with some of the same fundamental approaches used on machines such as planes and automobiles looking for unifying principles. These systems range from mammalian cell to microorganism to developmental biology systems (e.g. mammalian cells, magnetic bacteria, energy generating bacteria, Xenopus laevis) and applies principles from mechanical engineering fields (e.g. solid mechanics, control theory, fluidics, heat transfer, design) to understand how these principles may apply across diverse nature-based systems. I also focus on linking mechanics to biochemistry at the cellular and molecular levels through examining structural regulation.

Research Interests: biological mechanical systems; mechanotransduction; biological microfluidics and MEMS; molecular micropatterning

In addition, I work on novel approaches to technology development through focusing on nature inspired design principles at the molecular and cellular levels. I pursue these goals through developing and utilizing nanotechnology, microtechnology, computational biology, and control-feedback theory. These intersections are especially fascinating to me as these systems have evolved for distinct reasons (the "initial and boundary conditions" are different). In addition, as an engineer, I truly am interested in building new systems from the knowledge that we obtain in a similar thought process as we use to build a new machine.