I am currently working as a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Department of Mechanical Engineering under Dr. Nancy Diaz Elsayed, focusing on the “Smart Manufacturing Industry Initiative (SMII).” My research expertise lies in artificial intelligence, Internet of Things (IoT), and data analytics, production process optimization, energy efficiency, and leverage real-time sensor data for monitoring & predicting product quality & production. I also apply advanced robotics and automation to streamline manufacturing production lines.

I have always been inspired by creating technological solutions to address existing process challenges. What keeps me passionate is witnessing the successful implementation of these solutions and the impact they create.

Throughout my research career and PhD journey, there have been many proud moments. One that stands out is my persistence in overcoming numerous failures to achieve success. 

My research is driven by economic and workforce development goals. It focuses on training individuals in emerging technologies, which can lead to economic growth and improved industry practices.

Collaborating with individuals from diverse ethnic and professional backgrounds has been incredibly rewarding. I have gained a wealth of knowledge from these experiences, and together, we creatively tackle challenges.

Don’t limit your thought process by believing that a specific specialization defines your career path. Any career is just a stepping stone for your next adventure. Follow your heart and pursue what truly excites you.

I prioritize taking time off on weekends, going on vacation trips with friends, and spending quality time with family and friends. Establishing a routine for self-care throughout the week also helps. 

I enjoy spending time with friends, playing Catan, going for walks, and volunteering with church administrative work.

I don’t have a specific favorite place, but I love the Tampa Bay Trail, Bayshore Riverwalk, and Armature Works—any location with a scenic walking trail. 

Yes, we are always open to collaborations in education and training, undergraduate research, and workforce development. Please feel free to reach out to me at pallavi2@usf.edu.

If my research could take me anywhere in the world, I would love to visit Hawaii.

My favorite way to reset during a busy research day is taking a long walk with a friend.

I can beat anyone at Catan!

I am working in USF Department of Physics in the Advanced Materials and Devices Theory Group of Dr. Lilia Woods (Professor, Associate Chair). We are currently interested in dissipative phenomena in novel materials such as Casimir or van der Waals interaction, near-field radiative heat transfer, and quantum friction. Such kind of phenomena are caused by quantum vacuum fluctuation and affect the synthesis, efficiency, and reliability of nano or sub-nano devices. Please visit Dr. Woods ‘s homepage to find out more about our team and our research: https://www.amd-woods-group.com/.

When entering college, I was more interested in being a physics teacher in high school and never thought about doing science. During that time, I joined a research group in my university in other to spend time doing something else instead of boring homework in classes. Then I realized that nothing can compare with the happiness from doing research and I decided to pursue my Ph.D. degree to become a professional scientist. Obviously, research is a hard job where problems come every day but the happiness of finding things and seeing my finding being published keeps me on the track up to now. The excitement when being able to talk, to discuss with peers in my group or meetings, and conferences, … also reminds me how big I love physics whenever I want to give up this path.

It is quite personal but my proudest moment is when my first publication after marriage was accepted. I had been working on this research while preparing for my marriage and finally, I was able to express my love to my wife in the acknowledgment (DOI: 10.1088/1361-648X/ab940a). 

I am now contributing to theoretical research about dissipative phenomena in novel materials.   Caused by quantum vacuum fluctuation, such phenomena affect the synthesis, efficiency, and reliability of nano or sub-nano devices, and in the long term, studies about these phenomena are significant for the development of the semiconductor chip as well as quantum computer industries.

The most rewarding aspect of my postdoctoral experience at USF is opportunities. Working at USF with Dr. Lilia Woods brings me various opportunities to join one of the biggest conferences in physics (APS March Meetings 2023 and 2024) and receive the Postdoctoral Distinguished Student Program Award for outstanding non-US young researchers in APS March Meetings 2024; to be a reviewer for top tier journals in physics like Physical Review Letters (APS) or to collaborate with senior researchers all over the world and opening my research network and so on. USF Office of Postdoctoral Affairs also gives me a chance to serve as a judge for three-minute thesis competitions, which is an interesting experience.

My favorite advice is “Don’t be scared!”. The best advantage of youth is time. Young students have enough time to learn from not only success but also from failure. Therefore, they should not be scared of doing any research. My second advice is “Like what you do, not do what you like!”. Some young students are too serious to stick to one particular research direction that they think they like even though they haven’t done any research before. My own experience shows that we only know what kind of research we really like to do after seriously working on it and overcoming all of its difficulties. 

I don’t think I am good at maintaining a healthy work-life balance. When struggling with research, I just tried to let my brain not think about research by playing computer games, chess, or xiangqi online or doing housework.

There are several things I often do when feeling burnt out on research like playing computer games, chess, or xiangqi online or doing housework.

The Tampa Bay area is so interesting and there are plenty of places to hang out. But I personally love to hang out in Vietnamese restaurants in Tampa and St. Petersburg.  

I am always available for scientific discussion or advice via my email: dainamle@usf.edu.  

The most powerful ‘fuel’ for me is coffee, especially Vietnamese milk coffee. Do you know that the well-known equation E = m c^2 could be interpreted as Energy = (milk) x (coffee)^2 (haha).

There are several things I often do when feeling burnt out on research like playing computer games, chess, or xiangqi online or doing housework. 

One superpower I think could be useful for research is Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu. It is familiar to fans of Naruto (a Japanese manga and anime). With this superpower, I could create many of my clones to help me do tedious tasks in my research (haha). 

I am a postdoctoral scholar with a focus on biochemistry and neuroscience, currently working in Dr. Thinakaran's lab within the Molecular Medicine Department at USF. Our lab is located at Byrd Alzheimer's Center and Research Institute, where we study the genetic factors of Alzheimer’s disease. 

I have been fascinated by scientific research and discoveries since childhood. When I decided to pursue an academic career in science, I aimed to focus on a field where I could make a direct impact on human health. This ambition led me to specialize in neuroscience and Alzheimer’s disease research.

What fuels my passion for this field is the potential to create a real impact on the lives of millions affected by Alzheimer's disease. The complexity of the disease poses significant challenges, but it also drives a continuous quest for discovery and innovation. Every small breakthrough, whether it's understanding a new molecular pathway or identifying a potential therapeutic target, brings us one step closer to effective treatments. The collaborative nature of the scientific community and the hope that our collective efforts will one day lead to a cure continually motivate and inspire me in my work.

The proudest moments in my research career are the times when I share my scientific knowledge and findings with the scientific and public communities. These moments validate the countless hours spent in the lab and demonstrate the value of my contributions to the scientific community.

In the long term, my goal is to uncover key molecular mechanisms and pathways that drive the progression of Alzheimer’s. By enhancing our understanding of these underlying processes, my research can identify new therapeutic targets and pave the way for the development of more effective treatments. This would not only improve the quality of life for patients but also reduce the emotional and financial burden on families and healthcare systems.

The combination of conducting impactful research at Byrd Alzheimer's Center and Research Institute, collaborating with esteemed colleagues throughout USF, and mentoring the next generation of scientists has made my postdoctoral experience at USF exceptionally rewarding.

My advice to undergraduate and graduate students who aspire to a career in scientific research, particularly in the field of neuroscience and Alzheimer’s disease, is multifaceted:

Cultivate your curiosity and passion, focus on gaining a solid understanding of fundamental concepts in biology, chemistry, and neuroscience, get involved in research projects as early as possible, embrace collaboration, develop technical skills, and always keep your lab notes and experiments organized for future reference.

Maintaining a healthy work-life balance as a postdoctoral researcher has been quite challenging for me. The demanding nature of scientific research, particularly in a field as intricate as Alzheimer's disease, often requires long hours and intense focus, which can blur the boundaries between work and personal life. Despite these challenges, I try to set boundaries by designating specific times for work and personal activities. I also make it a point to spend quality time with family and friends, even if it's not as often as I would like.

I like watching TV shows and movies as an easy way to escape and enjoy some downtime. Game nights with friends, spending time outdoors, shopping, and engaging in various outdoor activities are other ways to clear my mind and stay active.

I like Lettuce Lake Park because of its tranquil and relaxing atmosphere. 

Yes, I am always open to collaborations and new opportunities. If you are interested in exploring potential collaborations or have opportunities that align with my research interests, please feel free to reach out to me. You can contact me via email at yukselm@usf.edu or connect with me through professional networking platforms such as LinkedIn. I am always eager to discuss new ideas and contribute to innovative projects in the field.

When diving into research, I often listen to classical music. While performing a routine experiment, I also enjoy tuning into political news programs. 

Chocolate, Turkish desserts.

Being like The Flash would be nice. With super speed, I could complete experiments in no time and still have plenty of time left for reading and analyzing data. It would also give me more time for my personal life.

Cardiac regenerative medicine

Department of Internal Medicine – Heart Institute

Observing the lack of therapeutic options to treat some health conditions

Exciting research, nice people, and the weather!

The many, many parks in this area, especially the ones with lakes and rivers

Reading and watching fiction and non-fiction. Does watching funny cat videos count?

Coffee!

Always happy to discuss exciting collaborations and opportunities!

Please reach me at ishaniw@usf.edu

I am currently working in Dept. of Pathology and Cell Biology in the lab of Dr. Saulius Sumanas. We study cardiovascular development in vertebrates using zebrafish as a model organism.

I was drawn to developmental biology during my Masters. It was a part of my coursework. Numerous questions intrigued me at that time, like how new life is formed, how a single cell forms an entire multicellular organism, what gives rise to the diversity of cells in our body, how do we acquire our characteristic morphology and so on. Today, I try to address these questions at the molecular level. 

There are many, but if I had to pick one, I will say the vibrant diversity of people. You can meet and connect to students and researchers from different parts of the world, learn more about their culture, food and other fun stuff.

In my free time I like spending time with my wife. We go on picnics or eating out in restaurants, I like to explore new cuisines. I love cooking, I enjoy experimenting with different ingredients. Sometimes they turn out good. I usually invite friends over to try what I experiment with in the kitchen.

Tampa riverwalk is my favourite place to hang out with family and friends.

I start with a little bit of stretching, followed by some routine exercises such as pushups, crunches etc. 

I would love to travel to Switzerland. I have seen reels on social media and heard a lot about how beautiful it is and would like to experience that in person.

Integrative Systems Biologist studying vascular development and regeneration in zebrafish at the Dept. Pathology and Cell Biology.

I chose the ISB program at UPitt for my PhD because I wanted to know how to analyze my own data and keep working on bench work. I was drawn to in silico modeling and how it can inform animal models and experimental design. Now as a postdoc I am continuing in the same path.

I am close to home and family. As they age, I wanted to be around in case they need me. 

I like to go downhill longboard and hunt for hills to send it! Usually trips to the mountains are best.

Flatwood Park, Splitsville

Was really funny but I was trying to build an app that would search for primers within a given sequence for me and I forgot about directionality when making it, so my reverse primers never worked, and I figured this out after my first primer order. I was so shocked and since that I have never forgotten nucleic acids have directionality, forward and reverse strands.

I am not currently looking for any collaborations but can be contacted by email. rdemoya@usf.edu