Making category judgments is an essential part of the human condition. Is the dog hungry or not? Am I hungry or not? Is Trump a serious candidate or is this some sort of publicity stunt? Our ability to categorize things allows us to respond appropriately for the situation and has been an essential survival trait (responding to a mountain lion the same way you would a cat is not a viable long-term strategy).  Together we will explore the basics of category learning and the visual system’s role.

Deposited oxide thin films are used in many advanced electronic applications such as logic and memory devices, III–V power and high frequency devices, optoelectronics, tunnel junctions, and spintronic. Oxides are thermodynamically stable but there are obstacles like poor mechanical properties and conductivity. The Holy Grail is the capability to tune electronic properties of oxides to reach an all oxide solid state device. This would be specially interesting for power device applications as power devices are expected withstand high current, voltage and power.

Questions such as “what causes color blindness?”, “how does one cure Alzheimer’s disease?” or “why is my hair blonde?” might seem like three independent questions but one word can broadly answer them all: genetics.  Genetics is the study of genes, the units of DNA that tell a cell how to function.  Genes ultimately determine what characteristic traits an organism will express thereby acting as a template for making us who we are.  My research focuses on exploring various genes that control formation of the retina, the thin light-sensitive tissue that lines the back of the eye.  Many of the

How does the autopilot keep an airplane on course without the pilot adjusting the rudders and engines? How does the thermostat keep a room at a specified temperature without anyone turning the radiator and/or A/C on and off? How do Segways transport people instead of planting them on their faces? The answer to all these questions is "mathematical modeling and feedback." Control Engineers use knowledge of the behavior of airplanes, room temperatures, two-wheeled platforms, and other engineering systems to write programs that react in the right way: Is it too hot? Turn on the fan.

Kelps are brown macroalgae that grow on coastal temperate rocky reefs around the world. In California, giant kelp is dominant, growing in a shallow rocky band along most of our coast and continuing into Baja California. The thick floating canopies formed by kelp forests can often be seen from shore, and anyone walking along beaches in California has probably seen a fly-encrusted kelp plant that has been ripped up by a wave and washed ashore. Kelp forests provide food and shelter for hundreds of species of animals, many of which are commercially important (i.e.

Parasites are an important player in natural communities, yet are understudied. Parasites can regulate population size, reduce individual health and reproduction, change host behaviour, and alter energy flows through a community. Understanding the impacts of parasites on natural communities an important and challenging area of research. The impact of parasites can be considerable- in some ecosystems, the biomass of parasites is greater than that of top predators like birds.

In this project the students will gain experience in the basics of biological experimentation with the model organism C. elegans. C. elegans are is a nematode worm (roundworm, not to be confused with ringworms) approximately 1mm in length when fully grown that can be found living in soil around the world. They are used as a model organism in science to help researchers answer basic questions for a large range of biological areas including; molecular biology, cellular biology, developmental biology, stem cells, neurology, and many others. In the Rothman Lab we use C.

The many news broadcasts on the recent flight MH370 tragedy have reported the difficulties encountered during the search for wreckage debris in the Indian Ocean. This is due among other things to the complex dynamics of the Indian ocean surface current. In the Mezic Lab we study dynamical systems and control theory with applications to fluid mechanics, micro and nanoscale processes. We have developed methods that improve efficiency of motion prediction, search and tracking of objects moving in ocean currents.

Our lab uses the sedimentary record of coastal to marine environments to infer changes in sea level, climate, and depositional settings over the past 10,000 years.

Microfluidic devices enable the precise control of very small volumes of fluids (smaller than 1 microliter).  In the Meinhart Lab we develop and fabricate such devices for a variety of applications, such as chemical detection, microchip cooling, and cell sorting.

This research project allows students to explore power consumption in embedded controllers.