12-6-94 Four Named NSF Young Investigators

FOUR RESEARCHERS NAMED YOUNG INVESTIGATORS BY NSF

     COLUMBUS -- Four researchers at The Ohio State University
have been named 1994 NSF Young Investigators (NYI) by the
National Science Foundation. The award is worth up to $100,000
per year in awards and research grants.

     All of the NYI winners from Ohio State teach and do research
in the College of Engineering. The recipients are Somnath Ghosh,
from the Department of Engineering Mechanics; Steve A. Ringel,
from the Department of Electrical Engineering; Wole Soboyejo,
from the Department of Materials Science and Engineering; and
Feng Zhao, from the Department of Computer and Information
Science.

     "The NYI awardees are an indication of the excellent young
faculty that we have recruited at Ohio State in recent years,"
said Edward F. Hayes, vice president for research at Ohio State.
"These faculty are working with students daily and engaging them
in research that will benefit Ohio and the nation."

     More than 1,400 junior faculty members from universities and
colleges around the country were nominated for this year's NYI
awards. The four researchers at Ohio State were among 197
scientists and engineers named Young Investigators by the NSF.

     The prize is given annually to junior faculty members who
intend to develop academic careers in research and education.
Nominees must have received a doctoral degree in the last five
years and must have a tenure-track or tenured position.

     A base award of $25,000 is provided to the recipients each
year for five years for research. The NSF will also match outside
public and private grants up to $37,500 annually.

     The NYI recipients from Ohio State are:

     -- Somnath Ghosh, 36, of WORTHINGTON, an assistant professor
of engineering mechanics. His research includes developing new
methods in computational mechanics for analysis, design and
processing of advanced materials. These materials could be used
in automotive, aerospace or computer parts.

     In addition to his research activities, Ghosh teaches
courses in the mechanics of materials and dynamics for
undergraduate engineering majors and graduate courses in
computational mechanics for engineers.

     He received his doctoral degree from the University of
Michigan, a master's degree from Cornell University and a
bachelor's degree from Indian Institute of Technology.

     -- Wole Soboyejo, 30, of COLUMBUS (43235)is an assistant
professor of materials science and engineering. He is developing
new ways of improving the fracture resistance of high temperature
materials. Most of these materials function well at temperatures
between 600 and 2,000 degrees Celsius, although they tend to
become brittle at room temperature. These high temperature
materials may be used in future airplanes that are currently
being developed to travel at speeds that are much faster than the
speed of sound.

     In addition to his research, Soboyejo teaches courses on the
mechanical behavior of materials to graduate and undergraduate
engineering students.

     He received his doctoral degree from Cambridge University
and his bachelor's degree from London University.

     -- Feng Zhao, 32, of UPPER ARLINGTON, an assistant professor
of computer and information sciences, came to Ohio State in 1992.
He is developing a class of new, intelligent computational tools
for scientific and engineering computation. These tools could aid
engineers and scientists in designing complex physical systems,
such as high performance train systems.

     Zhao teaches several courses in artificial intelligence and
scientific computing.  He received his doctoral and master's
degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his
bachelor's degree from Chiao Tung University in China.

     -- Steven A. Ringel, 32, of COLUMBUS (43214), is an
assistant professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering.
His research involves the development and investigation of novel
materials for semi-conductor devices that could be used for
alternative energy sources, high speed computing technology or
optical communication systems.

     In addition to his research, Ringel teaches undergraduate
and graduate engineering courses in the applications and physics
of solid state devices, such as transistors.  He earned his
doctoral degree from Georgia Institute of Technology, and his
master's and bachelor's degrees from The Pennsylvania State
University.
                                #

Contact: Richard Stoddard, Office of Research, (614) 292-1582
Written by Kelli Whitlock, (614) 292-9475


[Submitted by: REIDV  (reidv@ccgate.ucomm.ohio-state.edu)
               
Thu, 08 Dec 1994 16:30:47 -0500 (EST)]
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