Five UC San Diego Researchers Receive Presidential Early Career Awards

“We are pleased to see our early career faculty at UC San Diego receive these prestigious national awards, which acknowledge their exceptional research and innovative contributions,” said Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla. “I could not be more proud of these outstanding faculty members, who are not only redefining their fields, but also serving as role models and mentors to our students, shaping the next generation of visionary scientists, engineers and leaders.”

John Hwang, an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Hwang was recognized for his leadership on a project involving 11 research teams working to develop computational design tools that will help US companies build more efficient air taxi designs, faster. The ultimate goal is a network of air taxis and shuttles for an urban environment. Hwang was nominated by NASA.

Duygu Kuzum, an associate professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, was recognized for her exceptional research accomplishments that have advanced nanoelectronics for energy efficient neuromorphic computing and devices. She was also recognized for her innovative contributions in developing neurotechnology to better understand circuit-level computation in the brain.

Sophia Merrifield, an associate researcher at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, is a sea-going physical oceanographer who was recognized for her work on marine robotics, air-sea interactions, turbulence, and the development of uncrewed systems for environmental characterization. She uses autonomous vehicles to study ocean dynamics and designs adaptive path-planning algorithms for unmanned systems. Merrifield also developed and taught the course "Hacking for the Oceans,” where students collaborate with external sponsors to design rapid prototypes and innovative solutions to ocean-related challenges. She was nominated by the Office of Naval Research.

Sonya Neal, an associate professor in the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, studies the mechanisms related to misfolded proteins in cells and the medical importance linked with such potentially toxic threats. Through the PECASE award, she will investigate the mechanisms and dynamics of protein quality control systems, while implementing educational outreach by involving community college students in this research. She was nominated by the National Science Foundation.

Rose Yu, an associate professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, was recognized for her work to bring together AI models and real-world physics, in particular symmetries. She is working on innovative deep learning models that can reason about complex spatio-temporal dynamics. The work could lead to better turbulence modeling and trajectory forecasting algorithms, among other applications. Yu was nominated by the Army Research Office and the Department of Defense.

Established in 1996, the PECASE acknowledges the contributions scientists and engineers have made to the advancement of science, technology, education, and mathematics (STEM) education and to community service as demonstrated through scientific leadership, public education, and community outreach. The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy coordinates the PECASE with participating departments and agencies.