People
(most of EBFM Lab in Summer 2023)
Our mission statement, values, and expectations can be found here: EBFM Expectations
Dr. Margaret L. Byron (mbyron -at- psu.edu) earned her Ph.D. in Civil and Environmental Engineering from the University of California Berkeley in 2015 [CV, updated 9/13/21]. She is interested in the fluid dynamics of animal locomotion at intermediate Reynolds numbers and the dynamics of large particles in turbulent flows. She is a recipient of the NSF CAREER Award, the Beckman Young Investigator Award, and the American Chemical Society Doctoral New Investigator Award. For more information on current lab projects, see the Research page.
Outside of the lab…
Dr. Byron likes music, traveling, cooking, and outdoor activities like hiking and camping.
Dr. Byron’s availability (for meetings etc) can be accessed here.
POSTDOCS
Dr. David J. Peterman (djp6286 -at- psu.edu) is a postdoctoral scholar in the EBFM lab and received his PhD from Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. Using cross-disciplinary approaches, David researches evolutionary biomechanics, focusing on organisms (extinct and extant) that offer unique perspectives into aquatic locomotion.
Outside the lab…
Dr. Peterman enjoys fossil hunting, hiking, playing music, making art, and cooking.
GRADUATE STUDENTS
Reza Zharfa (mzz5382 -at- psu.edu) is a Ph.D student in Mechanical Engineering. He received his MSc degree from Lyle school of Engineering at SMU in Dallas, Texas. His research interests include Experimental Fluid Dynamics, Biological locomotion, and Flow control.
Outside of the lab…
Reza likes music, traveling, hiking, reading books and watching movies.
Michael Crognale (mjc6724 -at- psu.edu) is an M.S. student studying Mechanical Engineering, and he is interested in particle aggregation in turbulent flow. He is studying how natural aggregates incorporate oil.
Outside the lab…
Michael enjoys watching baseball, reading, and driving.
Snigdha Shiuly Tikader (sft5474 -at- psu.edu) is a Ph.D. student in Mechanical Engineering. She completed her B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET). Snigdha is interested in analyzing animal locomotion. Her current research focuses on understanding the physical mechanisms and biological adaptations by which water-dwelling insects achieve multimodality.
Outside the lab…
Snigdha enjoys photography, singing and cooking.
Hai Le (hcl5082 -at- psu.edu) is a Ph.D. student in Mechanical Engineering. He completed his B.S in Mechanical Engineering from Iowa State University. Hai is interested in understanding the scaling of cilliary flows.
Outside the lab…
Hai enjoys playing sports and listening to music.
Cameron Hoover (cmh7295 -at- psu.edu) is a World Campus M.S. student studying Mechanical Engineering. He completed his B.S. in Aerospace Engineering at Wichita State University. His research focuses on understanding the effects of non-uniform mass distribution on settling particles.
Outside the lab…
Cameron enjoys watching basketball, golfing, and fishing.
Nitis Chantarawong (nmc5415 -at- psu.edu) is an M.S. student in Mechanical Engineering and is interested in material science and marine animals– particularly in how marine life has evolved to survive in different environments. He is currently studying how small freshwater invertebrates swim at intermediate Reynolds numbers.
Outside of the lab…
Nitis enjoys listening to music, drawing, and watching movies.
UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS
Bankshita Devkota (hcl5082 -at- psu.edu) is a rising senior in Biomedical Engineering. She is working on analyzing the 3D swimming maneuvers of ctenophores and their overall biomechanics.
Outside the lab…
Bankshita is part of Society of Women Engineers, and likes to paint, watch movies, and travel.
Jean-Paul Edwards (jce5256 -at- psu.edu) is a rising senior in Mechanical Engineering. He is currently working on measuring and analyzing the fluid kinematics of the swimming maneuvers of various aquatic insects.
Outside the lab…
Jean-Paul enjoys going to the gym, cooking, and napping.
Below is a list of EBFM alumni and their first position after leaving Penn State.
GRADUATE ALUMNI
Brandon Angle, M.S. M.E., 2019 (Bechtel Plant Machinery, Inc)
Tony Sabatino, M.S. M.E. 2020 (PSU Applied Research Laboratory)
Annalie Fazio, M.S. M.E. 2022 (Lockheed Martin)
Adrian Herrera-Amaya, Ph.D. M.E. 2023 (Brown University Presidential Postdoctoral Fellow)
UNDERGRADUATE ALUMNI
Elizabeth Seber, B.S. M.E., 2018 (Advanced Cooling Technologies)
Joey Bail, B.S. M.E., 2018 (Carlisle Construction Materials)
Aidan Cronin, B.S. M.E. with honors, 2019 (Lockheed Martin)
Rebecca Denby, B.S. M.E. with honors, 2019 (Air Products)
Nitis Chantarawong, B.S. M.E., 2019 (Penn State Mechanical Engineering MS program)
Annalie Fazio, B.S. M.E., 2020 (Penn State Mechanical Engineering MS program)
Aaron Aguiles, B.S. M.E., 2020 (NC State Mechanical Engineering MS program)
Carlos Abarca, B.S. M.E., 2020 (UW Mechanical Engineering PhD program)
Marwan Fayed, B.S. M.E., 2021 (UCLA Mechanical Engineering PhD program)
Brayden Bowie, B.S. M.E. with honors, 2022 (Naval Nuclear Laboratory)
Luna Morales, B.S. M.E. with honors, 2022 (Boeing)
Merry Remetira, visiting researcher 2022 (University of Guam)
Sofia Szikman (B.S. M.E. anticipated 2024)
Marcianne Mason (B.S. M.E. anticipated 2025)
Devin Thomas (B.S. Aero.E. anticipated 2025)
JOINING THE LAB
We are always looking for motivated, excited students (both graduate and undergraduate) to join the lab! Check out the Research page to learn more about what we do. Openings for specific projects are typically posted on the Home page; however, it is always worth checking in by email to see if anything can be arranged.
If you are interested in joining the group, send an email to mbyron [at] psu [dot] edu with a description of yourself and your interests, and how you think you could contribute to our work. Please speak about your interest in our specific research areas; I do not respond to form letters with a few words copied and pasted.