Four researchers with MIT affiliates – Juncal Arbelaiz, Xiangkun (Elvis) Cao, Sandya Subramanian, and Heather Zlotnick ’17 – have been honored in the Schmidt Science Fellowships competition.
Created in 2017, the partnership program aims to bring together the world’s most intelligent minds “to solve society’s most complex challenges.”
Four MIT researchers who are among 29 Schmidt Science Fellows from around the world will receive postdoctoral support for one or two years with an annual salary of $ 100,000, with and individual training and participation in the Global Meeting Series program. Fellows will also have opportunities to interact with thought leaders from science, business, policy, and society. According to the award ceremony, fellows should pursue research that shifts from the focus of their PhDs, to helping to expand and improve their future as science leaders.
Juncal Arbelaiz is a PhD candidate in applied mathematics at MIT, completing his medical degree this summer. His medical studies at MIT are recommended by Ali Jadbabaie, JR East Professor of Engineering and head of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Anette Hosoi, Neil and Jane Pappalardo Professor of Mechanical Engineering and vice -principal of the School of Engineering; and Bassam Bamieh, professor of mechanical engineering and assistant director of the Center for Control, Dynamical Systems, and Computation at the University of California at Santa Barbara. Arbelaiz’s research revolves around the design of professional intelligence for professional social media.
“I can’t think of a better way to start my independent science career. I feel so excited and grateful for this opportunity,” Arbelaiz said.With his friendship, he will to study system biology to study how the nerve uses and activates specific information to address safety in future-level intelligent applications. ”The Schmidt Science Fellowship will give me a unique opportunity to work in the field of biomedical and machine intelligence for two years and will be a step towards my long-term goal of becoming a researcher in bio-inspired machine intelligence, ”he said.
Xiangkun (Elvis) Cao is currently a postdoc in the laboratory of T. Alan Hatton, Professor Ralph Landau in Chemical Engineering, and an Associate Fellow in the MIT Climate and Sustainability Consortium. Cao received his PhD in mechanical engineering from Cornell University in 2021, where he focused on microscopic accuracy in the combined delivery of light and water to optofluidics, with relevant advances in health and continuing applications. As a Schmidt Science Fellow, he plans to co -consult with Hatton on carbon capture, and Ted Sargent, a professor of chemistry at Northwestern University, on carbon emissions. Cao enjoys the use of carbon dioxide and carbon dioxide (CCU) from mole mole in the process, training machines to stimulate CCU intelligence, and communication of technology, business, and policy for CCU.
“The Schmidt Science Fellowship provides a great opportunity for me to work in schools to study the capture of fused carbon and its utilization from molasses in the process,” Cao said. “My vision is that by combining carbon capture and use, we can do scientific research together and open up economic opportunities while reducing global climate change. In this way, it is possible. then we convert our carbon bonds into an asset.
Sandya Subramanian, a 2021 PhD graduate of the Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences and Technology (HST) in the field of medical engineering and physics, is currently a postdoc in Stanford Data Science. He focuses on the subjects of biomedical engineering, statistics, machine learning, neuroscience, and health. His research is on the development of new technologies and methods to study the interactions between the brain, the autonomic nervous system, and the gut. “I am very honored to receive the Schmidt Science Fellowship and to be part of the Schmidt community of leaders and scholars,” said Subramanian. “I’ve heard a lot about fellowship and the fact that it can open doors and give people the confidence to pursue difficult or unique paths.”
According to Subramanian, the autonomic nervous system and its interactions with other organs are not well understood but are thought to be involved in many problems, such as gastrointestinal problems, Parkinson’s disease, diabetes. , migraines, and eating disorders. The aim of her research is to improve our ability to observe and compare these physical trends. “I am very excited to understand how we can use physical monitoring technology to inform clinical decision -making, especially in physical activity, and I look forward to continuing. the work I recently began at Stanford as a Schmidt Science Fellow, ”he said.“ Thank you so much to all the advisors, partners, friends, and leaders I enjoyed meeting and working with at HST and MIT: I couldn’t have done this without everything I learned there. ”
Hannah Zlotnick ’17 attended MIT for her undergraduate studies, specializing in rescue engineering and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. At MIT, Zlotnick was a student-player on the women’s soccer team, a UROP student at Alan Grodzinsky’s lab, and a member of Pi Beta Phi. For his PhD, Zlotnick attended the University of Pennsylvania, and worked in Robert Mauck’s laboratory in the departments of Bioengineering and Orthopedic Surgery.
Zlotnick’s PhD research focused on the use of remote forces, such as magnetism or gravity, to improve cartilage engineering and osteochondral repair both in vitro and in large animal models. Zlotnick now plans to venture into the field of biofabrication to conduct knee joint experiments to evaluate specific treatments for osteoarthritis. “I am humbled to be part of the Schmidt Science Fellows community, and excited to be immersed in the field of biofabrication,” Zlotnick said. “Hopefully this work will provide new treatments for patients suffering from chronic diseases.”
