2017-2018 Doctoral Graduates

GROVE SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING 2017-2018 DOCTORAL GRADUATES

During the 2017-2018 academic year, 34 bright, young researchers were awarded doctoral degrees. In addition, five candidates from the Computer Science Department were awarded doctoral degrees from the CUNY Graduate Center. All of these men and women are now embarking on national and international high technology careers and postdoctoral studies. Postdoctoral destinations include the University of Pennsylvania, Stanford University, Columbia University, and Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Career destinations include Scripps Institution of Oceanography, United Technologies, and NASA.

Here is the complete list of 2017-2018 Ph.D. graduates, their dissertation topics, and future plans.
 

Farnaz Abtahi, Ph.D., Computer Science
Dissertation: Multimodal Sensing and Data Processing for Speaker and Emotion Recognition using Deep Learning Models with Audio, Video and Biomedical Sensors
     Advisors: Drs. Zhigang Zhu (CS) and Tony Ro (Neuroscience)
Post-Ph.D.: Senior Research Scientist, WorkFusion
 

Kazi J. Ahmed, Ph.D., Electrical Engineering
Dissertation: IoT Device Security for 5G Network
     Advisor: Dr. Myung J. Lee
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Researcher under Dr. Myung J. Lee
 

Ayse Serra Akbas, Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering
Dissertation: Local Bone Tissue Mechanical Property Changes Without Bone Remodeling: Regulation at the Osteocyte Level
     Advisor: Dr. Mitchell Schaffler
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery Department, UCSF Medical Center
 

Behzad Asadieh, Ph.D., Civil Engineering
Dissertation: Implications of Climate Change for Extreme Precipitation and Stream-flow, and Impacts on Water Resources Management
     Advisor: Dr. Nir Krakauer
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Earth and Environmental Science, University of Pennsylvania
 

Vahid Azadeh Ranjbar, Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering
Dissertation: Piezoelectric Fluidic Energy Harvesters Subjected to Vortex Induced Vibration
     Advisor: Dr. Yiannis Andreopoulos
Post-Ph.D.: Lecturer, Department of Computer Science, Boston University
 

Anne Marie Bartosch, Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering
Dissertation: Investigating Endothelial Mechanotransduction using AFM Pulling: Cell Surface Molecules Glypican-1 and PECAM-1 Mediate the Production of Nitric Oxide and Prostacyclin
     Advisor: Dr. John M. Tarbell
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Research Scientist, Columbia University
 

Simeon Bikorimana, Ph.D., Electrical Engineering
Dissertation: Development of Dual-Wavelength Semiconductor Optical Amplifier-Based Fiber Compound-Ring Laser for Continuous-Wave Terahertz Photomixing
     Advisors: Drs. Roger Dorsinville and Muhammad Ummy
Post-Ph.D.: Consultant, Quantitative Research Analyst, Exile Capital Management, LP
 

George Bonev, Ph.D., Computer Science
Dissertation: Machine Learning Algorithms for Automated Satellite Snow and Sea Ice Detection
     Advisor: Dr. Irina Gladkova
Post-Ph.D.: Machine Learning Engineer, Liveperson Inc.

Matteo Campanelli, Ph.D., Computer Science
Dissertation: Rationality and Efficient Verifiable Computation
     Advisor: Dr. Rosario Gennaro
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Researcher, IMDEA Software Institute, Madrid

Quanquan Chen, Ph.D., Civil Engineering
Dissertation: Commercial Vehicle Parking Management Strategies for Residential Delivery in New York City
     Advisor: Dr. Alison Conway
Post-Ph.D.: Principal Planner, Freight Planning, North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority
 

Jack Chiu, Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering
Dissertation: The Effect of Ballistic Impact on Adhesively-Bonded Single Lap Joints in the Shear Mode
     Advisor: Dr. Niell Elvin
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Researcher, Mechanical Engineering, Grove School of Engineering
 

Morann Sonia Dagan, Ph.D., Electrical Engineering
Dissertation: Infrared Lidar for Aerosol and Cloud Observations
     Advisor: Dr. Fred Moshary
Post-Ph.D.: Founder, Atolla Tech LLC
 

Ahmed El-Habashi, Ph.D., Electrical Engineering
Dissertation: Remote Sensing Over Coastal and Open Oceans: Retrieval of Water Constituents from Scalar and Polarimetric Observations
     Advisor: Dr. Samir Ahmed
Post-Ph.D.: Research Associateship, National Research Council (NRC), Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, D.C.
 

Amarachukwu (Amara) Enemuo, Ph.D., Electrical Engineering
Dissertation: Macroporous Silicon and Polymer Resonance Waveguide Structure for Optical Sensing
     Advisor: Dr. Sang-Woo Seo
Post-Ph.D.: Process Engineer, Intel
 

Vittorio Gatti, Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering
Dissertation: The Effects of Skeletal Unloading on Bone Microstructure and Fluid-Mediated Osteocyte Mechanotransduction
     Advisor: Dr. Susannah Fritton
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Columbia University
 

Gittel Gold, Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering
Dissertation: Development of an Injectable, Cellulose-Based Hydrogel System for Soft Tissue Reconstruction
     Advisor: Dr. Steven Nicoll
Post-Ph.D.: Undecided


Kenneth Gollins, Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering
Dissertation: Characterization of Adhesive Joints Under High-Speed Normal Impact
     Advisor: Dr. Feridun Delale
Post-Ph.D.: Staff Mechanical Engineer, Predictive Engineering

Ali Hamidi, Ph.D., Civil Engineering
Dissertation: Understanding the Spatiotemporal Variability of Extreme Rainfall and Its Impacts on the Urban Infrastructure Systems
     Advisor: Dr. Reza Khanbilvardi
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Researcher, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego
 

Freddy Hernandez-Alvarado, Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, Thermal Hydraulics
Dissertation: Advancements of Two-Phase Flow Measurements Techniques for Microbubble Reactors
     Advisor: Dr. Masahiro Kawaji
Post-Ph.D.: Model Based Development Engineer, United Technologies Climate, Controls & Security, Syracuse, NY
 

Feng Hu, Ph.D., Computer Science
Dissertation: Vision-based Assistive Indoor Localization
     Advisor: Dr. Zhigang Zhu
Post-Ph.D.: Senior Software Engineer, Self-Driving, NVIDIA
 

Muhammad Anwar Hussain, Ph.D., Electrical Engineering
Dissertation: Vehicle-to-Grid Optimization in Smart Grid Network
     Advisor: Dr. Myung J. Lee
Post-Ph.D.: Telecom Data Scientist, Noblis Inc.
 

Alexandros Karaiskakis, Ph.D., Chemical Engineering
Dissertation: Investigation of the Catalytic and Associated Factors that Impact Activity and Selectivity in Carbon Dioxide Electroreduction
     Advisor: Dr. Elizabeth J. Biddinger
Post-Ph.D.: Undecided
 

Simon Kleinbart, Ph.D., Chemical Engineering
Dissertation: The Structure of Complex Air-Water Flows: Studies of Void Fraction and Liquid Phase Axial Mixing in a Microbubble-Enhanced Gas-Liquid Mixer and a Model Nuclear Fuel Rod Bundle
     Advisor: Dr. Masahiro Kawaji
Post-Ph.D.: Undecided
 

Bing Li, Ph.D., Electrical Engineering
Dissertation: Intelligent Situation Awareness and Navigation Aid for Visually Impaired Persons
     Advisor: Dr. Jizhong Xiao
Post-Ph.D.: Undecided
 

Huizi Anna Lin, Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering
Dissertation: Development and Functional Evaluation of Injectable Cellulose-Based Hydrogels as Nucleus Pulposus Replacements for Intervertebral Disc Repair
     Advisor: Dr. Steven Nicoll
Post-Ph.D.: Consultant, ClearView Healthcare Partners
 

Madhu Venkata Rama Krishna Majji, Ph.D., Chemical Engineering
Dissertation: Inertial Instabilities of Suspension Flow in Taylor-Couette Geometry
     Advisors: Drs. Jeffrey F. Morris and Sanjoy Banerjee
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Chemical Engineering, Stanford University, CA
 

Stephanie Marenne, Ph.D., Chemical Engineering
Dissertation: Unsteady Shear Flows of Monodisperse Colloidal Suspensions Using Discrete Particle Simulations
     Advisor: Dr. Jeffrey F. Morris
Post-Ph.D.: Software Engineer, Velo3D Inc.
 

Sean McCutcheon, Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering
Dissertation: A Multi-Scale Fluidic Platform for the Study of Dendrite-Mediated Cell Communication 
     Advisor: Dr. Maribel Vazquez
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Fellow, Dominick P. Purpura Department of Neuroscience, Albert Einstein College of Medicine 
 

Ariel Miara, Ph.D., Civil Engineering, Water Resources and Environmental Engineering
Dissertation: Connections Across Climate, Water Resources and Electricity Generation in the United States: Challenges and Opportunities in the 21st Century
     Advisor: Dr. Charles J. Vörösmarty
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Researcher, National Renewable Energy Laboratory; Senior Research Associate, Advanced Science Research Center, Graduate Center of the City University of New York
 

Luis E. Ortiz, Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering
Dissertation: Combined Urban-Synoptic Impacts on Local Climate and Energy Demand During Extreme Heat Events in New York City
     Advisor: Dr. Jorge Gonzalez
Post-Ph.D.: Undecided
 

Carlos Perez Diaz, Ph.D., Civil Engineering
Dissertation: Creating a Snow Product Capable of Utilizing Remote Sensing Satellite Data (Microwave and IR) and Estimated Snow Wetness
     Advisor: Dr. Reza Khanbilvardi
Post-Ph.D.: Senior Research Scientist, SAI Inc. and NASA MCST, Greenbelt, MD
 

Ke Qu, Ph.D., Civil Engineering
Dissertation: Computational Study of Hydrodynamic Impact by Extreme Surge and Wave on Coastal Structure
     Advisor: Dr. Hansong Tang
Post-Ph.D.: Assistant Professor, School of Hydraulics, Changsha University of Science & Technology, China
 

Ritesh Ray Chaudhuri, Ph.D., Electrical Engineering
Dissertation: Hybrid Integration of Thin-film Photonic Devices for Multifunctional Microsystems
     Advisor: Dr. Sang-Woo Seo
Post-Ph.D.: Senior Process Engineer, GlobalFoundries Inc.

Fazlul Shahriar, Ph.D., Computer Science
Dissertation: Machine Learning Approach to Retrieving Physical Variables from Remotely Sensed Data
     Advisor: Dr. Irina Gladkova
Post-Ph.D.: Undecided
 

Kristifor Sunderic, Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering
Dissertation: Effects of Thermal Dosing and Ultrasound on Osteogenic Differentiation of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells in 2D and 3D Culture
     Advisor: Dr. Sihong Wang
Post-Ph.D.: Associate Science Writer, The New York Academy of Sciences
 

Swanand Tupsakhare, Ph.D., Chemical Engineering
Dissertation: Simulation of In-Situ Combustion in Gas Hydrate Systems for Methane Production and Carbon Sequestration
     Advisor: Dr. Marco J. Castaldi 
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Chemical Engineer, Southern Research, Durham, NC
 

M. Isabel Vanegas, Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering
Dissertation: Novel Stimulation Paradigms to Study Visual Response Modulations in Health and Disease
     Advisor: Dr. Simon P. Kelly
Post-Ph.D.: Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Utah
 

Eleftheria Veneti, Ph.D., Biomedical Engineering
Dissertation: Using pH-dependent Elastin-Functionalized Targeted Liposomes for Treating Breast Cancer
     Advisors: Drs. Raymond Tu and Debra Auguste
Post-Ph.D.: Undecided
 

Dan Wan, Ph.D., Civil Engineering
Dissertation: The Spatial Analysis of Crash Frequency and Injury Severities in New York City: Applications of Geographically Weighted Regression Method
     Advisor: Dr. Camille Kamga
Post-Ph.D.: Data Analyst, Data Engineering and Technology Group, NYC Department of Transportation