New Assistant Research Professor

Shuai Zhang 

Department: Materials Science & Engineering
Research focus: atomic force microscopy, self-assembly, molecular dynamics at solid-liquid interfaces, interfacial hydration, 2D Van der Waals materials, machine learning

Shuai Zhang joins Materials Science and Engineering this fall as an research assistant professor, having previously taught at the department as an acting instructor and research associate. Shuai has advanced protein-material interfaces in his work to design novel protein-inorganic hybrid materials and better understand how protein-crystal interactions can be systematically programmed.

 

New Assistant Teaching Professors

Kyle Caldwell 

Department: Human Centered Design & Engineering
Research focus: technology ethics, design inquiry methods

 

Kristin Dew joins Human Centered Design and Engineering as an assistant teaching professor. Her research is rooted in the sustainability and ethics of interaction design and technology production practices. In her Ph.D. dissertation, she examined the environmental impacts of human-computer interaction, creating methods that center natural resource scarcity and waste materials in interaction design.

Penny Hinke 

Department: Electrical & Computer Engineering
Research focus: technical and creative writing; public speaking and oral presentations

Penny Hinke is joining Electrical and Computer Engineering as an assistant teaching professor, where she has taught advanced technical communication since 2016. Penny received an MFA in creative writing from Goddard College and is a graduate of the Artist Trust EDGE Development Program for Literary Artists. Her work has appeared in literary magazines and journals in the US and the UK. She is currently writing a memoir.

Luna Huang 

Department: Materials Science & Engineering
Research focus: data science application in materials research, electronic structure study of quantum materials

Luna Huang received her Ph.D. in 2006 and has since worked as an engineering project manager and educator. She was the design lead on the Washington state Route 520 East corridor project and has served as an adjunct teaching faculty at Bellevue College and as a lecturer for UW Materials Science and Engineering. She currently serves as a board member on the Washington State China Relations Council, improving the commercial and cultural engagement of Washington state with China.

Department: Human Centered Design & Engineering
Research focus: human factors engineering, system design, gender bias

Sarah Coppola joins Human Centered Design and Engineering from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where she was a postdoctoral fellow in human factors engineering. In her research, she explores the impacts of bias in technology, such as how gendered differences in interface design can cause a disproportionate number of physical injuries in women.

Kristin Dew 

Department: Chemical Engineering
Research focus: nanoparticles, particular composites

Kyle Caldwell is joining Chemical Engineering as the John C. Berg Endowed Lecturer. After receiving his Ph.D. from the UW, he was a senior scientist at Innovative Organics, where he managed a team developing a range of environmentally-friendly chemicals for HDD, IC, LED, automotive and aerospace markets.

Sarah Coppola