hidden COVID-19 Updates
Please visit the UC San Diego Return to Learn page for up-to-date campus COVID-19 guidelines.
For Eric Shnell, his innovation journey began right here at UC San Diego in 2018 when he founded his startup Craitor, which develops highly capable, resilient and intuitive 3D printers for those who work far outside the sterile controls of a lab or shop. Full Story
By using a combination of personalized scans as well as digital designs and 3D printing on a large scale, the LIMBER team believes it could reduce the cost of a prosthesis by anywhere from 50% to 90%, delivering prosthetics much faster to those who need them. Full Story
The UC San Diego campus community turned out in big numbers last Friday to celebrate the opening of the sleek and soaring Franklin Antonio Hall. The 186,000 square foot building is not only innovative in its architecture, it’s also ground-breaking in how research teams are organized within the building. Full Story
Battery researchers and other engineers from University of California San Diego, with collaboration from the LG Energy Solution, have published a forward-looking perspective article in the journal Joule. In the article, the researchers outline three categories of engineering challenges that must be solved in order to transition all-solid-state batteries from the laboratory toward large-scale industrial manufacturing. These three challenges are that of precursors, processing and pressure. Full Story
David Loo graduated from UC San Diego in 1991 with a degree in computer engineering. During his 35-year career, he worked his way up from software engineer to founding developer of ServiceNow and CEO of Perspectium, the company he cofounded after leaving ServiceNow. In this Q&A, Loo talks about his journey and gives some advice about how to invite luck into your professional life. Full Story
Using this combination of personalized scans as well as digital designs and 3D-printing on a large scale could reduce the cost of a prosthesis by anywhere from 50% to 90% and deliver prosthetics much faster to those who need them. Ph student Joshua Pelz, postdoctoral researcher Luca De Vivo and prosthetics expert Herb Barrack have formed a startup, LIMBER Prosthetics & Orthotics, Inc., to commercialize the technology. Full Story
Bioengineers and cardiologists from UC San Diego invented a technology that can accurately and noninvasively map atrial and ventricular heart arrhythmias in a matter of minutes. The technology demonstrated 97.3 percent accuracy in a clinical validation study, and recently received FDA clearance. Full Story
Jacobs School of Engineering alumnus Britton Boras shares how his graduate degree prepared him for a career at Pfizer, where he was on the team that developed a COVID-19 antiviral pill. Full Story
After arriving in the United States from Myanmar at age 13, UC San Diego alumnus Lin Thu Hein is now using his degree in electrical engineering to bring solar-powered lighting to people off the grid and displaced by the recent unrest in his home state of Kachin in Myanmar. He received an Echoing Green Fellowship for this work. Full Story
Paul A. Libby, Professor Emeritus in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE) at the University of California San Diego, passed away on Nov. 2, 2021, at the age of 100 in La Jolla, Calif. An international expert in turbulence and combustion, Libby was recruited in 1964 by Professor Stanford “Sol” Penner as one of 10 founding faculty members of the Department of Applied Mechanics and Engineering Science (AMES) at the newly formed campus in La Jolla. Full Story
NASA on Monday chose a UC San Diego chemical engineering graduate to train to become an astronaut, a decision that comes as the space agency is preparing to send humans back to the moon, possibly as early as 2025. Full Story
UC San Diego bioengineering alumnus Christophe Schilling is the cofounder and CEO of Genomatica, which just raised $118M in funding led by Novo Holdings. Genomatica makes sustainable, renewably-sourced chemicals and materials. Full Story
After earning her PhD in electrical engineering from the Jacobs School, Mooi Choo Chuah spent years conducting research in industry before becoming a computer science professor at Lehigh University. Chuah, who holds 63 patents, shared her industry to academia journey as she delivered the 31st Annual Professor Chin Fung Kee Memorial Lecture. Full Story
Congrats to UC San Diego engineering alumni Deepak Atyam (aerospace), Alexander Finch and Jesse Lang (both structural), whose company Tri-D Dynamics was acquired by Titomic Limited. Tri-D develops smart, IoT connected pipe infrastructure. Full Story
Ishwar K. Puri, an internationally known scientist and engineer whose research has explored fire safety, nanotechnology and 3D cell printing, has been named USC’s new vice president for research. Puri earned a PhD in engineering Science from the Jacobs School of Engineering at UC San Diego. Full Story
Anna Pridmore graduated from UC San Diego in 2009, with a Ph.D. in structural engineering, with a focus in advanced composites, design, material science and structural analysis. Today, she is vice president-pipeline and water infrastructure solutions at Structural Technologies. Full Story
For the second year in a row, the University of California San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering has ranked #9 in the nation in the influential U.S. News & World Report Rankings of Best Engineering Schools. Full Story
A gene therapy for chronic pain could offer a safer, non-addictive alternative to opioids. By temporarily repressing a gene involved in sensing pain, the treatment increased pain tolerance in mice, lowered their sensitivity to pain and provided months of pain relief without causing numbness. Full Story
For David Breslauer, a UC San Diego bioengineering alumnus and co-founder and chief scientific officer at Bolt Threads, a bioengineering company in Emeryville, Calif., the potential of the spider and the mushroom represent not just another way to make apparel, but a way to bring greater sustainability to the clothing industry. Full Story
Structural engineering alumnus Ji-San Lee is the senior designer for CLAE Footwear, working to make their shoes more sustainable through recycled materials. Full Story
In November 2020, Lucira Health received emergency use authorization for the first rapid at-home COVID-19 test from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Erik Engelson, a UC San Diego bioengineering and microbiology alumnus, is president and CEO of Lucira Health. He spoke about the process of getting the COVID-19 test kit through FDA emergency use authorization, his time at UC San Diego, and advice for students, in this Q&A. Full Story
Jacobs School computer science and engineering and Center for Machine Integrated Computing and Security alumna Bridget Benson shares her journey to becoming an associate professor of electrical engineering at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. Full Story
As we look back at 2020 and move forward in 2021, there are two high-level moves we are also making. These moves are designed to ensure the Jacobs School emerges more ready than ever to confront the challenges, injustices, and societal and innovation needs laid bare by the pandemic. Full Story
Education is the great equalizer. Jacobs School of Engineering alumni Mary Bui-Pham and Dan Pham have seen this play out in their own lives, and have donated the funds to endow a scholarship supporting students with outstanding academic merit, including students who have made or show potential to contribute to diversity, equity and inclusion; first generation; and low-income engineering students. Their gift launched the larger Jacobs School of Engineering Dean’s Scholars of Excellence program, a school-wide scholarship program meant to advance equal access to a Jacobs School education. Full Story
UC San Diego bioengineering and biology alumnus Joshua Yang was named to Forbes 30 Under 30 list for Healthcare. Yang, an MD-PhD student at Johns Hopkins, cofounded kidney diagnostics startup Nephrosant, and is active in healthcare venture capital due diligance. Full Story
Shao-chi Lin, Professor Emeritus of Engineering at the University of California San Diego, died on October 8, 2020 at the age of 95. He is remembered by former students and colleagues as a talented and caring teacher, mentor and researcher; and an active member of the campus community. Full Story
In an effort to keep students and alumni engaged and connected to campus resources during months of remote school and work, the Jacobs School’s Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) Department’s Alumni Advisory Board launched an ECE Alumni Mentorship Program (AMP) in October. Full Story
On Tuesday, the Food and Drug Administration gave emergency use authorization to the first rapid at-home COVID-19 test, developed by Lucira Health. Erik Engelson, a UC San Diego bioengineering and microbiology alumnus, is president and CEO of Lucira Health Full Story
UC San Diego alumni here on Earth and in space were part of the team that brought a Turbine Ceramic Manufacturing Module to the International Space Station. Full Story
Flexible battery startup Ateios, founded by Jacobs School of Engineering alumni, has raised $1.25 million in seed funding to bring its paper-thin, customizable batteries to market. Full Story
Medical diagnostic company Fluxergy, founded by UC San Diego engineering alumni, submitted an Emergency Use Authorization to the FDA for their quick, point-of-care COVID-19 test. Full Story
From creating scholarships and providing leadership, to student mentoring and preserving the arts, four shining examples of Triton passion and commitment will be honored Feb. 7 at UC San Diego’s True Triton Celebration to be held in the Great Hall on campus. Full Story
A startup founded by a UC San Diego electrical and computer engineering graduate student is one of five finalists in the 2020 UC Pitch Startup Showcase held Jan. 29 and 30 in tandem with the Global Corporate Venturing and Innovation Summit in Monterey, Calif. Full Story
In Ozgur Sinanoglu’s Design for Excellence lab at New York University’s Abu Dhabi campus, a major development in cybersecurity has emerged. The Electrical and Computer Engineering professor and his team of eight researchers have made news over the last couple of years with their strides to create a chip that can stand up to a variety of threats and attempts to violate its security. A first-of-its kind chip that would be unhackable. Sinanoglu is an alumnus of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at UC San Diego. Full Story
UC San Diego engineering alumnus Albert Yu-Min Lin can be described in many ways: explorer, engineer, scientist, artist, surfer, humanist, traveler, philosopher, father. It’s a challenge to capture Lin, whether in a few words or just for a quick phone call. He seems to have an endless supply of momentum—an energy, curiosity and optimism as big as the world he is continually exploring. Full Story
Since earning her PhD in computer science in 2003, Bianca Zadrozny has pursued her computer science career, in both industry and academia, in two countries. Her path has led her to IBM Research in Brazil, where she oversees natural resources analytics research. Her group’s mission is to conduct research projects in data-driven and physically driven analytics, aiming to develop novel technologies that can help in smarter natural resources discovery and exploration. Full Story
Interdisciplinary partners at UC San Diego are using drones and 3D-modeling to save Puerto Rico’s indigenous history from the sea. In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in late 2018, Eric Lo, a Jacobs School alumnus who now works at the Qualcomm Institute at UC San Diego, touched down in Puerto Rico with a single goal: find the ancient archaeological site he had helped monitor for more than a year and assess the damage. Full Story
Yuan-Cheng “Bert” Fung, known as “the father of biomechanics” and one of the founders of the discipline of bioengineering at the University of California San Diego, passed away Dec. 15, 2019 of natural causes. He was 100. Full Story
Neha Chachra works as an Engineering Manager at Facebook, where she has been employed since 2016, leading a team that protects Facebook against abusive links, protecting the platform from harmful URLs that expose users to phishing, spamming and malware. The work is a natural progression of her research and interests at UC San Diego, where she received her Ph.D. in 2015. Full Story
During its inaugural showcase, the Institute for the Global Entrepreneur announced it’s launching a new MedTech Accelerator, as well as the Shah Family Entrepreneur Fellowship, and a new IGE Founders Fund, seeded with an initial $1 million philanthropic gift from the Legler Benbough Foundation. Full Story
The University of California San Diego celebrated the groundbreaking of its newest engineering building, Franklin Antonio Hall, on Friday. The building is designed for active learning, collaborative research and the transfer of innovation to society. Full Story
They came in droves to sit in the Red Chair–graduate students, undergrads, faculty, staff, deans, the chancellor. They came to express their thoughts on diversity—and the results were powerful.“I sit so that one day every student can look at their classroom and see people who are like them,” said undergrad Joyaan Bhesania."I sit for my ancestors who could not,” said Becky Petitt, Vice Chancellor of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. “And I'm grateful that they opened doors for me to be able to sit here.” Full Story
Thousands of professors, engineers, scientists and students around the world work in the field of biomechanics, the study of physics and mechanics applied to living tissues. But they are all somehow connected to Professor Y.C. “Bert” Fung at the University of California San Diego. Some use Fung’s findings in their work. Others were trained by or worked with Fung’s students. A core group studied directly under him. Fung realized that physics and mechanics apply to living tissues just as they do to manmade structures. He is often referred to as “the father of biomechanics.” Full Story
A team of computer scientists at UC San Diego and the University of Illinois has developed an app that allows state and federal inspectors to detect devices that steal consumer credit and debit card data at gas pumps. The devices, known as skimmers, use Bluetooth to transmit the data they steal. Full Story
Robert Hecht-Nielsen was an influential neuroscientist, entrepreneur, and electrical engineering professor at the University of California San Diego. He passed away in his sleep on May 26, 2019 in Del Mar, Calif. He was 71 years old. A pioneer in the development of neural networks, Hecht-Nielsen authored the first textbook on the subject, Neurocomputing, in 1989. Full Story
Dan Chang feels that he left the world a better place after his 30 years in industry and credits his time at UC San Diego with putting him on that path. He is passionate about ensuring that our current engineering students know that they are capable of doing more than making a lot of money with their degree. Full Story
Two years ago, as fourth-year undergraduate students majoring in engineering, Yan Gong and Lu Xu had no idea they were about to enter the world of biomedicine. They were in a circuits class when their professor recommended them for positions in Imanuel Lerman’s lab, which was searching for students to help with developing a treatment for chronic pain. One of their first meetings with Lerman was at a hospital where Lerman, associate professor with UC San Diego’s Department of Anesthesiology, asked the two students to solve an issue with interference that was jamming his medical research neurotechnology devices. Without his tools, he couldn’t accurately measure his patients’ physiological responses to a novel neurotechnology he hoped would dampen their responses to pain. Full Story
Taner Halicioglu, a computer science alumnus, will be recognized as Outstanding Alumnus during the 2019 Alumni Awards Celebration Weekend, May 31 to June 2. True Xiong, an electrical and computer engineering alumnus, will be recognized as a Changemaker. Full Story
The challenge is on! UC San Diego is hosting its inaugural Giving Day for 1,960 minutes on Thursday, May 16 with a goal of bringing the university community together to create collective impact. To make Giving Day a bit more fun, several generous donors have created matching gift challenges for Jacobs School of Engineering projects. Full Story
The University of California San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering was just ranked the #11 graduate engineering program in the country by US News. Hear from more than 200 of these talented graduate students as they present their research at the 38th annual Jacobs School Research Expo, a showcase of the top engineering and computer science work underway at UC San Diego. Full Story