Abby Daily
Columbia University
Abby Daily is a second-year Master’s student at Columbia University studying biomedical engineering. She grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, and attended Virginia Tech for her undergraduate education. While at Virginia Tech, she worked on developing multiple medical devices for the improvement of hemodialysis with Dr. John Robertson. After receiving her Bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering, she moved to New York to start graduate school at Columbia where she is currently involved in microfluidics research at the Sia Lab. She plans on starting a Ph.D. after finishing her Master’s program. Outside of work and school, Abby loves to run, try new vegan food, do plein air drawings of the city, and spend time with her dog, Bonzo.
Yixin Hu
Georgia Institute of Technology
Yixin Hu is a rising fourth year at the Georgia Institute of Technology studying Materials Science and Engineering with a concentration in Polymer and Fiber Materials and a minor in Chemistry and Biochemistry. He is interested in the materials paradigm and its applications to biologicals—thus his aspirations to enter graduate school in hopes of either a PhD or MD-PhD in tissue engineering. Currently, he has been investigating the usage of protein-shielding strategies for universal influenza vaccines development with Dr. Ravi Kane’s group at Georgia Tech. Outside of the Kane Lab, he is the founder and leader of the Science of Sports Learning and Discovery team investigating foam degradation in running shoes with the Materials Innovation and Learning Laboratory at Georgia Tech. Last summer, he also investigated the synthesis and processing of hydrogels in contact lens applications at Alcon under Dr. Daqing Wu. When he is not in the lab, you can find him volunteering at the Shepherd Rehabilitation Center, serving on the executive committee of the Delta Upsilon fraternity, honing his pour-over coffee brewing technique, and exploring Atlanta by foot.
Mateen Jangda
Georgia Institute of Technology
Mateen Jangda is a rising third-year undergraduate student majoring in Industrial Engineering with a concentration in Analytics and Data Science at Georgia Institute of Technology. After graduating, Mateen hopes to attend medical school and become a cardiothoracic surgeon. At Georgia Tech, Mateen joined the Open Polymer Active Learning Laboratory, where he worked to create a widely applicable guide on characterizing techniques of macromolecules, such as Dynamic Light Scattering, Differential Dynamic Microscopy, and Particle Tracking. Currently, he is working alongside his mentor, Dr. Russo, to apply his understanding of these techniques to help characterize early indicators of cancer. Alongside his work at Georgia Tech, Mateen is researching with Dr. Jacob, an Infectious Disease doctor at Emory Medical Hospital. Mateen is using his experience in data analytics to create a social network that tracks movements across the hospital to determine the impact of bed movements on hospital infection rates. Outside of research, Mateen volunteers at East Cobb Islamic Center Clinic, tutors students at Georgia Tech, and loves volunteering at Habitat for Humanity. In his free time, he plays basketball, hikes, and goes to Falcons games. Rise Up!
Naomi Zecharias
MIT
Naomi is a rising junior at MIT. She is majoring in Biological Engineering with a concentration in Biomechanics and Biomedical Devices, as well as an intended minor in computer science. At the Langer Lab in the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, she has worked on developing a closed loop system for chemotherapy delivery that accounts for individual pharmacokinetic variances. Outside of research and coursework, she is an executive member of the MIT chapter of National Society of Black Engineers, advocating for more representation for black engineers in industry. She is also an Undergraduate Professional Development Associate of the MIT Biotech Group, an organization aiming to provide professional development and networking opportunities for students interested in both biotechnology research and industry. In her free time, Naomi loves reading, listening to music, and going on walks around Boston.
Serena Zhao
Harvard University
Serena is a rising senior at Harvard University studying bioengineering and public health. She is passionate about technology, engineering, medicine, and education, aspiring to pursue a career in healthcare that intersects these fields. Originally from Long Island, New York, she began her research career in high school, optimizing a simple method for creating high-efficiency activated carbon from gourd rinds. Since then, her research pursuits have led her to engineer genetic circuits for tissue-specific tumor immunotherapies, develop a resin-based multicolor SEM imaging method, and identify genomic methylation sites for PTSD subtyping. Outside of research, she is the Director of Initiatives for the Harvard Biotechnology Club and is a course assistant for various engineering and STEM courses at Harvard. In her free time, you can find her trying new recip, playing with her puppy, or searching for the best neighborhood cafe.
MERRIT is a collaborative training program bringing together nephrology researchers at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and the engineering educators at The Cooper Union to promote advances in the development of kidney disease treatment.