- Departments
- Interdepartmental Programs
- Associated Research Centers
- Alexandria Digital Library Project
- California Nanosystems Institute
- Center for Polymers and Organic Solids
- Center for Research in Financial Mathematics and Statistics
- Center for Stem Cell Biology and Engineering
- Earth Gate
- Institute for Collaborative Biotechnologies
- Institute for Computational Earth System Science
- Institute for Crustal Studies
- Institute for Quantum & Complex Dynamics
- Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics
- Marine Science Institute
- Materials Research Laboratory
- National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis
- National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis
- Neuroscience Research Institute
- Southern California Earthquakes Center
- UCSB Natural Reserve System
New Faculty
Recent Faculty Hires
2010-2011
BLESZYNSKI-JAYICH, Ania
Physics, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Harvard University (Physics)
Research Interest: Focused within experimental condensed matter physics, addressing fundamental quantum mechanical effects in mesoscopic systems using state-of-the-art experimental techniques, specifically scanning probe microscopy (SPM) and cantilever torque magnetometry. Focused on electron transport and magnetization studies of semiconducting and metallic nanostructures and single molecule magnets, driven by the advancing complexity of new material systems and extreme submicron processing methods. Some of these systems are nanoscale devices created using lithographic tools; others are complex materials created by advances in chemical synthesis.
SIMMS, Alexander
Earth Science, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Rice University (Earth Science)
Research Interest: Understanding how sedimentary systems have responded to past climate and sea-level changes, focusing on Quaternary coastal systems, with ongoing projects along the coasts of the Antarctic Peninsula and the northwestern Gulf of Mexico. He has also started to conduct research studying the impacts of past climate changes on terrestrial depositional systems such as playa lakes (Texas), arroyos (Oklahoma), and eolian dune fields (Texas and Oklahoma).
XU, Cenke
Physics, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., UC Berkeley (Physics)
Research Interest: Main areas of research include strongly correlated systems in condensed matter physics, quantum phase transitions and universal behaviors, novel phases in frustrated magnets and psuedo spin systems, and topolical insulators.
2009-2010
Chemistry, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Colorado State University (Chemistry)
Research Interest: New reaction developments and their application to the synthesis of architecturally challenging and biologically important molecules. Initially focusing on identifying efficient new methods for the construction of carbon-nitrogen bonds. Nitrogen-containing molecules are valuable pharmaceutical targets and fundamental building blocks in natural product synthesis.
Chemistry, Lecturer
Ph.D., UC San Diego (Chemistry)
Research Interest: She will be teaching courses in general, physical and analytical chemistry and courses associated with the Science and Mathematics Initiative.
Physics and College of Creative Studies, Lecturer
Ph.D., University of Rochester (Physics)
Physics and Kavli Institute of Theoretical Physics (KITP), Professor
Ph.D., Princeton University (Physics)
Research Interest: String theory.
Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology and Biomolecular Science & Engineering, Professor
Ph.D., University of Washington (Pharmacology)
Research Interest: Investigating the biological functions of protein glycosylation and the cellular mechanisms by which this type of post-translational modification regulates mammalian physiology and participates in disease pathogenesis.
McCAULEY, Edward
Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, Professor and Director, NCEAS
Ph.D., McGill University (Ecology)
Research Interest: Internationally recognized leader in the field of population ecology, endeavoring to answer key questions concerns the dynamics of biological populations and to develop conceptual approaches that we canuse to evaluate general mechanisms governing dynamics in non-linear, complex ecology systems.
Statistics & Applied Probability, Acting Assistant Professor
Ph.D., expected in 2009, Duke University (Statistics)
Research Interest: The intersection of statistical methods and their applications to biology and epidemiology.
Environmental Studies, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Sociology (University of California, Berkeley)
Research Interest: Investigates the participation of developing-country firms in India and Brazil in the Kyoto Protocol's Clean Development Mechanism and the use of scenarios in global environmental governance. In the past, her work has focused on the roles played by transnational oil corporations and transnational environmental advocacy NGOs in the UN climate negotiations.
Physics and Kavli Institute of Theoretical Physics, Professor
Ph.D., Princeton University (Physics)
Research Interest: String theory.
Environmental, Evolution & Marine Biology, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., UC Davis (Population Biology)
Research Interest: The two fundamental processes of evolutionary biology: adaptation via natural selection and the formation of new species.
Earth Science, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., University of Tubingen (Paleooceanography)
Research Interest: Understanding, application, and further development of chemical and isotopic signatures, archived in calcareous marine micro-organisms, as proxies for the reconstruction of paleoceanographic and terrestrial climate changes on orbital to anthropogenic time scales. The overarching goal is to understand the thermal, salinity, and productivity history of the oceans, thropical ocean´s relationship with high latitude climates and the interaction of tropical sea surface temperaure with and effect on the terrestrial climates.
Chemistry, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., University of Michigan (Organic/Medicinal Chemistry)
Research Interest: Gold catalysis of tandem reactions.
2008-2009
Environmental Studies and History, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., UC Los Angeles (History)
Research Interest: Histories of land use, natural resource management, environmental politics, and ecological science in the North American West and beyond. Particular interest in endangered species and biological diversity.
Geography, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., University of Sao Paolo, Brazil (Meteorology)
Research Interest: Regional and large-scale climate variability and modeling, global climate change, and scaling processes in geophysics
Earth Science, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Oxford University (Geology)
Research Interest: Continental tectonics and focus on combining structural analysis, geothermobarometry, igneous and metamorphic petrology with high resolution isotope geochronology, to identify and constrain the temporal and spatial scale of processes that serve to modify and/or produce new continental crust
Geography, Associate Professor
Ph.D., UC Irvine (Earth System Science)
Research Interest: The interactions between soils, plants, and the atmosphere, the investigation of how ecosystem and biogeochemical processes respond to natural and human-induced environmental changes, and how those processes may further modify the environment
Earth Science, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Brown University (Geological Sciences)
Research Interest: Computational approaches to the interpretation of paleoclimate time series particularly integrated analysis of widely distributed paleoclimate records;Â primary focus on Plio-Pleistocene glacial cycles
Statistics & Applied Probability, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Princeton University (Operational Research and Financial Engineering)
Research Interest: Financial mathematics and stochastic control
Physics, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Caltech (Astrophysics)
Research Interests: Using a unique detector technology called Microwave Kinetic Inductance Detectors (MKIDs) for astronomy in the near infrared, optical, and ultraviolet.
Geography, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., UC Berkeley (Integrative Biology)
Research Interest: Understanding the consequences of land-cover and land-use change, the effects of urban and suburban development on regional water, energy, and carbon exchange
Physics, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., MIT (Experimental High-energy Physics)
Research Interest: At the intersection of experimental nuclear/particle physics and observational astronmy.
Environmental Studies, Lecturer
Ph.D., UC Santa Barbara (Political Science)
Research Interest: Water policy, climate change, and issues of environmental policy
Physics, Professor and Dean, Mathematical, Life & Physical Sciences
Ph.D., Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (Physics)
Research Interest: Soft condensed matter and complex fluids, e.g., polymers, colloids, liquid crystals, and his current research is focused on developing new fabrication techniques for photonic crystals including colloidal self-assembly and multi-beam interference lithography.
Chemistry, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Florida State University
Research Interest: Natural product synthesis as a platform for the development of new chemistry that may ultimately enable more efficient preparation of useful organic materials for a variety of applications, such as pharmaceuticals, new therapies, or in materials chemistry
2007-2008
BOOKHAGEN, Bodo
Geography, Assistant Professor
Dr. rer. Nat Universitat Postdam, Institut fur Geowissenschaften (Geology)
Research Interest: Late Quaternary Climate Changes, Quantitative Geomorphology, Landscape evolution on short (<1 y) and long (>106 y) timescales, Cosmogenic Nuclide Dating, Remote Sensing of Rainfall and other climatic parameters
Ecology, Evolution & Marie Biology and Biomolecular Science & Engineering, Professor
Duncan and Suzanne Mellichamp Chair in Systems Biology
Ph.D., University of California, Santa Barbara (Biology)
Research Interest: Theoretical ecology; disease ecology; population dynamics; systems biology
Mathematics, Assistant Professor
Ph.D., Courant Institute of Mathematical Science, New York University (Mathematics)
Research Interest: Algebraic Geometry, Several Complex Variables
Ecology, Evolution & Marie Biology, Lecturer
Ph.D., Imperial College, London, UK
Research Interest: Population and community ecology; host-parasitoid interactions.
Physics/Station Q, Professor
Ph.D., Princeton University (Theoretical Physics)
Research Interest: condensed matter physics
Psychology, Professor
Ph.D., University of Washington (Psychology)
Research Interest: consciousness; memory; emotion; creativity; social cognition; philosophical issues in psychology such as the relationship between experience and self-report.
Ecology, Evolution & Marine Biology, Assistant Professor,
Ph.D., University of Utah (Biology)
Research Interest: Gene network evolution; evolution of gene regulation; evolution in varying environments; canalization and robustness; sexual selection; sex allocation; niche evolution
