Professor John Bush directs the Fluids Lab.

Instructors and Postdocs

Dr. Tristan Gilet (Instructor) has been undertaking experimental and thoeretical work focused on the dynamics of bouncing droplets. Soon to join the faculty in Engineering at the University of Liege.

Dr. James Bird (NSF Postdoc) has been involved in a number of projects, including the dynamics of bursting viscous bubbles. Soon to join the faculty in Mechanical Engineering at Boston University.

Dr. Daniel Tam (Instructor) has been undertaking experimental and thoeretical work focused on the role of flexibility in passive flight.

Dr. Lydia Bourouiba (NSERC Postdoc) has been focused on fluids problems relevant to the dynamics of disease transfer: the transfer of respiratory diseases via coughing and sneezing, and the transfer of plant disease via the splashing of rain drops.

Graduate Students

Jan Molacek (Mathematics) has been involved in theoretical modeling of biological search processes. He is currently investigating the dynamics of bouncing droplets, giving particular attention to deducing criteria for droplet bouncing and walking on a vibrating fluid bath.

Anand Oza (Mathematics) has been involved in the theoretical modeling of wave-particle systems, giving particular attention to the self-propulsion and interaction of droplets bouncing on a fluid bath.

Daniel Harris (Mathematics) has been leading the experimental charge in our investigations of the quantum mechanical behaviour of bouncing droplets. Currently investigating droplets walking in a corral geometry, and other hydrodynamic analogues of quantum systems.

Wonjung Kim (Mechanical Engineering) has focused on natural drinking strategies among birds, beasts and insects.

Lisa Burton (Mechanical Engineering, co-supervised by Peko Hosoi) is involved in an investigation of the effect of flexibility on interfacial floatation. She has also developed a fleet of cocktail boats, powered by alcohol-induced Marangoni stresses.

Undergraduates

Lucas Tambasco (UROP) is involved in an experimental investigation of droplets bouncing and walking on the surface of a vibrated fluid bath.

John Wang (UROP) is involved in an experimental investigation of droplet impact on flexible sheets, a problem motivated by an interest in the spread of plant disease via rain.

Eline Dehandschoewerker (visiting from ENS Cachan, Paris) is involved in an experimental investigation of multicomponent jets and clouds, an experimental study of respiratory disease transmission via coughing and sneezing events.

Alumni

Former Instructors and Postdocs

Dr. Pedro Reis (Former Instructor, Mathematics) was involved in several projects involving the dynamics of thin sheets. He is currently jointly on the faculty in the Departments of Mechanical Engineering and CEE at MIT.

Dr. Roman Stocker (Former Instructor, Mathematics) was involved in investigations of the `beating heart', spontaneous oscillations of surfactant-laden fluid lenses. He is currently on the faculty in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, MIT.

Dr. Anette Hosoi (Former Instructor, Mathematics) was involved in an investigation of evaporatively-driven convective instabilities in climbing films, specifically, the fluid dynamics of wine. She is presently on the faculty in Mechanical Engineering, MIT.

Dr. Tom Peacock (Former Instructor, Mathematics) was involved in investigations of the Boycott effect in stratified fluids, and wave propagation in stratified fluids. He is presently on the faculty in Mechanical Engineering, MIT.

Dr. Sunny Jung (Former Instructor, Mathematics) was involved in several projects involving biocapillarity, including the dynamics of spider capture thread.

Dr. Morris Flynn (Former Instructor, Mathematics) is involved in several projects, including the mechanics of underwater plastron breathing in insects and bacteria.

Dr. Matthew Hancock (Former Instructor, Mathematics) was involved in theoretical investigations of the wetting of elastic textured materials. He is currently a research scientist working in biomedical engineering.

Dr. Aslan Kasimov (Former Instructor, Mathematics) is involved in our continuing investigations of instabilities of the circular hydraulic jump. He is currently on the faculty at KAUST.

Dr. Arezki Boudaoud (Former Instructor, Mathematics) was involved in an experimental and theoretical investigation of instabilities in twisted fluid threads. He is presently on the faculty in the Department of Physics, Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris.

Dr. Jeff Parsons (Former Postdoctoral Research Fellow, EAPS) was involved in experimental and theoretical modeling of particles sedimenting through stable double-diffusive interfaces. He is presently on the faculty at the Department of Oceanography, University of Washington.

Former Graduate Students

Dr. Francois Blanchette (Former Graduate student, Mathematics) was involved in the theoretical and experimental modeling of sedimentation in stratified fluids. He completed his PhD in Applied Mathematics in June 2003, postdoced at UCSB before joining the faculty at UC Merced.

Dr. David Hu (Former Graduate Student, Mathematics) was involved in experimental and theoretical investigations of the propulsion mechanisms of semi-aquatic insects, including the water strider. He is currently a postdoc at the Courant Institute at NYU, and will soon join the faculty at Georgia Tech.

Dr. David Vener (Mathematics) was involved in the theoretical modeling of solid bodies rolling in viscous fluids. He is now working on Wall Street with hopes of funding the laboratory.

Dr. Nikos Savva (Mathematics) was involved in the theoretical modeling of the dynamics of viscous fluid sheets. He is currently postdocing at Imperial College, London.

Dr. Linda Elkins (Former Graduate student, EAPS) was involved in the modeling the dynamics of tektites: cooling metalic drops ejected by meteor impacts. She is presently on the faculty at MIT's Department of EAPS.

Jeff Aristoff (Former Graduate Student, Mathematics) was involved in our experimental investigation of viscous hydraulic jumps as a UROP. As a grad student, he explored various surface tension dominated flows, including the tears of wine and the impact of small bodies on the free surface. Finally, he studied the dynamics of a sphere rolling on an elastic beam. Currently a postdoc at Princeton.

Peter Buchak (Former Graduate Student, Mathematics) was involved in the theoretical investigation of flow past flexible bodies, as pertains to wind flowing past a flapping book, waves on wheat fields, and the dynamics of reeded instruments. Currently a postdoc at University of Massachusetts, Amherst.

Manu Prakash (Former Graduate Student, CBA, Media Lab) Manu was involved in our investigations of capillary feeding in birds, the design of water-walking robots, and capillary-driven motion in confined geometries. Currently on the faculty at Stanford University.

Brian Chan (Former UROP and Graduate Student, Mechanical Engineering) , Mastercraftsman and Swordsmith, The Jedi Knight of Origami, was involved in the design and construction of robotic creatures, including the Robostrider. He completed his PhD under the supervision of Prof. Peko Hosoi in Mechanical Engineering, and still graces the halls of MIT.

Former UROPS and Undergraduate Visitors

Alex Garcia (UROP) was involved in an experimental investigation of droplets bouncing and walking on the surface of a vibrated fluid bath.

Jillian James (UROP) was involved in an experimental investigation of elastic buckling at an interface, with applications to floating flowers and capillary catapults.

Sunshine Zhou (UROP) was involved in an experimental investigation of the dynamics of a `dripping chain'.

Rita Ciaravino (UROP) was involved in an experimental investigation of the stability of a book flapping in the wind.

Pierre Renvoise (visiting from Ecole Polytechnique, Paris) conducted an investigation of fluid slug motion in tapered tubes.

Pascal Raux (visiting from ENS, Cachan, Paris) conducted an investigation of the dynamics of rolling elastic ribbons.

Christiane Heinicke (visiting from University of Ilmenau, Germany) conducted an investigation of wind-driven waves on wheat fields.

Mike Sekora (UROP, Mathematics) was involved in an experimental investigation of rolling bodies in viscous fluids. Currently enrolled in the PhD program at Princeton.

Maurice Blount (UROP, Mathematics) was involved in an experimental investigation of instabilities of non-Newtonian gravity currents. He was visiting MIT from Cambridge University courtesy of the CMI Program.

Russell Zahniser (UROP, Physics) was involved in an experimental investigation of the stability of rotating fluid jets which formed the basis for his senior thesis in Physics.

Jeff Leblanc (UROP, Mathematics) is involved in an experimental investigation of polygonal hydraulic jumps.

Tim Kreider (UROP, Mathematics) has been involved in an experimental investigation of rolling drops, and theoretical investigations of meniscus-climbing in semi-aquatic insects.

Alice Chau (UROP, Mathematics) is involved in an experimental investigation of water strider locomotion.

Bev Thurber (UROP, Mathematics) was involved in an experimental investigation of particle clouds in homogeneous and stratified environments. She is presently pursuing doctoral studies at Cornell University.

Alex Hasha (UROP, Mathematics) was involved in an experimental investigation of fluid pipes, and an experimental and theoretical investigation of colliding jets. He is currently pursuing graduate work at the Courant Institute, NYU.

Robbie Buckingham (UROP, Physics and Mathematics) pursued research towards his senior thesis involving the dynamics of viscous water bells. He is presently pursuing doctoral studies in the Department of Mathematics at Duke University.

Jan Skotheim (UROP, Physics and Mathematics) developed a number of laboratory demonstrations for Professor Dan Rothman's undergraduate course entitled Chaos and Complexity, and pursued research towards his senior thesis involving the drainage of soap films. He subsequently pursued doctoral studies at DAMTP, University of Cambridge, then a postdoc at the Rockefeller Institute. He is currently on the faculty in Biology at Stanford University.

Judy Su (UROP, Mechanical Engineering) was involved in an experimental investigation of particle settling through a stable density interface. She is presently pursuing doctoral research in Mechanical Engineering at MIT.

Nasser Demir (UROP, Mathematics) was involved in an experimental investigation of sedimentation from gravity currents. He will begin his doctoral studies at Duke in September 2004.

Jessica Kleiss (UROP, Mathematics and EAPS) was involved in an experimental investigation of particle settling through an interface at low Reynolds number. She is currently pursuing graduate studeis at UCSD.

Jon Lubetsky (UROP, Environmental Engineering) conducted a series of experiments aimed at elucidating the interaction between sedimenting particles and stable double-diffusive interfaces.

Visitors

Dr. Christophe Clanet (Ecole Polytechnique, Paris) was visiting the Department for the spring term 2008. We are currently collaborating on various topics involving the dynamics of elastic bodies.

Tristan Gilet (University of Liege) was a visiting graduate student in the fall of 2008, and examined the dynamics of droplets bouncing on a soap film.

Prof. Darren Crowdy (Imperial College, UK) was visiting the Department from 2005-2007, finding exact solutions everywhere he went.

Prof. David Quere (ESPCI, Ecole Polytechnique, Paris) was visiting the Department for the spring term 2006. We are currently collaborating on various topics, including capillary-driven motion in confined geometries.

Prof. Neil Balmforth (University of British Columbia) was visiting the Department for the 2003-2004 academic year, and working on a wide variety of problems including non-Newtonian gravity currents, and the snail ball.

Dr. Jan-Bert Flor (LEGI, Grenoble) and Professor Marius Ungarish (Technion, Israel) visited the laboratory for extended periods during 1999-2000 in order to pursue a study of stratified spin-up, a collaborative international research initiative supported by NATO.

Prof. Arshod Kudrolli (Clark University) has been visiting the Department since 1999, and works on a variety of problems involving sedimentation and granular media.