Bios Archive - Page 4 of 11 - Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering

Martina Brueckner

Professor of Pediatrics; Professor of Genetics, Yale School of Medicine

Elected to the Academy in 2026

Education

University of Virginia, BS, Chemistry; University of Virginia, MD, Medicine

Professional Areas

Dr. Brueckner played a leading role in the consortium that identified a genetic cause for ~40% of congenital heart disease cases. Co-founded one of the first pediatric cardiac genetics clinics, offering comprehensive diagnostic evaluations and long-term care for children with genetic heart disease.

Citation

For scientific distinction through a cumulative body of work identifying genetic variants expressed in embryonic cardiomyocytes in patients with a range of congenital heart disease that support the genetic overlap between myocardial function and cardiac structure development.

Ranjit Bindra

Professor of Therapeutic Radiology, Pathology, and Neurosurgery, Yale School of Medicine

Elected to the Academy in 2026

Education

Yale University, BS, Molecular Biophysics & Biochemistry; Yale School of Medicine, MD, Medicine; Yale School of Medicine, PhD, Experimental Pathology

Professional Areas

Translational cancer research, DNA damage response, synthetic lethality, brain tumor therapeutics, and oncology drug development. Integrates molecular biology and biomedical engineering to design and advance novel targeted agents, including novel DNA-damaging agents and nanoparticle-delivered drugs.

Citation

For uncovering novel cancer-associated DNA repair vulnerabilities, and for directly translating them into clinical trials, including new classes of brain tumor therapeutics.

Steven Berry

Sterling Professor of Economics; Professor of Management, Yale University

Elected to the Academy in 2026

Education

Northwestern University, BA, Economics; University of Wisconsin – Madison, MS, Economics; University of Wisconsin – Madison, PhD, Economics

Professional Areas

Industrial organization and econometrics, with a focus on empirical models of markets in equilibrium, considering demand for differentiated products and imperfectly competitive supply. His applied studies span industries, with policy applications.

Citation

For distinguished and continuing achievements in econometrics and industrial organization, work that is frequently incorporated into merger and policy decisions, both by private sector firms and by public-sector agencies.

Nora Berrah

Distinguished Professor of Physics, University of Connecticut

Elected to the Academy in 2026

Education

University of Virginia, PhD, Physics; University of Bab Ezzouar, MS, Theoretical Physics

Professional Areas

Dr. Berrah is a pioneer in atomic, molecular, and optical physics, specializing in ultrafast molecular dynamics using femtosecond and attosecond pulses and table-top lasers. Her research investigates the interaction of molecules and nano-systems to understand ultrafast photo-induced phenomena.

Citation

For pioneering experiments using femtosecond and attosecond lasers to probe how electrons and atoms move in molecules and clusters, this work revealed ultrafast charge-transfer and nonlinear dynamics using free-electron lasers, transforming how we study light-matter interactions at a quantum level.

Abhijit Banerjee

Associate Vice President for Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, University of Connecticut

Elected to the Academy in 2026

Education

Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, PhD, Biological Chemistry; Suffolk University, MBA, Business

Professional Areas

Intellectual property protection and licensing, technology commercialization, industry-university research partnerships, biological chemistry, and structural biology.

Citation

For strengthening Connecticut’s innovation economy through leadership in technology translation, commercialization, startup generation, and research and development partnerships, for advancing UConn’s role in economic development, and for contributions to biological chemistry and structural biology.

Ganesh Balasubramanian

Department Chair; Lambrakis Endowed Associate Professor, Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of New Haven

Elected to the Academy in 2026

Education

Jadavpur University, B.S., Mechanical Engineering; Virginia Tech, Ph.D., Engineering Mechanics

Professional Areas

Internationally recognized expert in computational engineering for high-entropy alloys and chalcogenide perovskites with significant contributions to atomistic and first-principle modeling of materials for mechanical properties, and predictive characterization for their design and manufacturing.

Citation

For outstanding technical contributions to the predictive design, discovery, and synthesis of high-entropy materials using data-enabled simulations and computational characterization of material structures, manufacturing optimization, and experimentally validated high-temperature properties.

Xiao-Dong Zhou

The Nicholas E. Madonna Chair In Sustainability; Director, Center For Clean Energy Engineering; Connecticut Clean Energy Fund Professor Of Sustainable Energy, And Professor Of Chemical And Biomolecular Engineering, Materials Science And Engineering, And Mechanical Engineering, UConn College Of Engineering

Elected to the Academy in 2025

Education

East China University of Science and Technology (China), 1994, BS, Chemical Engineering; 1997, MS, Chemical Engineering; University of Missouri-Rolla, 2001, PhD, Ceramic Engineering

Professional Areas

Electrochemical systems, including fuel cells, batteries, and electrolyzers, promoting sustainable energy solutions

Citation

For seminal contributions to electrochemical systems, including fuel cells, batteries, and electrolyzers, promoting sustainable energy solutions, and advancing Connecticut as a leader in clean energy research and innovation.

Guoan Zheng

UTC Associate Professor Of Biomedical Engineering; Director, UConn Center For Biomedical And Bioengineering Innovation, UConn College Of Engineering

Elected to the Academy in 2025

Education

Zhejiang University, 2007, BS, Electrical Engineering; California Institute of Technology, 2008, MS, Electrical Engineering; 2013, PhD, Electrical Engineering

Professional Areas

Microscopy, optical instrumentation, Bio Photonics, and quantitative image analysis

Citation

For the invention of Fourier ptychography that transforms high-resolution microscopy through computational aperture synthesis beyond physical limits of optics, now adopted worldwide across X-ray, electron, and optical platforms and established as a standard tool in microscopy.

Jing Zhao

Associate Department Head And Professor Of Chemistry, UConn College Of Liberal Arts And Sciences

Elected to the Academy in 2025

Education

University of Science and Technology of China, 2003, BS, Chemical Physics; Northwestern University, 2008, PhD, Chemistry

Professional Areas

Determining the optical properties of metal and semiconductor nanomaterials of varying compositions at both ensemble and single particle level; resolving the important factors that govern the structure-function relationships of nanomaterials; developing, optimizing and functionalizing nanomaterials for applications in catalysis, optoelectronics and sensing.

Citation

In recognition of contributions advancing fundamental understanding of the optical properties of metal and semiconductor nanomaterials, the development of innovative synthetic and characterization techniques for nanomaterials, and their impactful applications in catalysis, optoelectronics, and sensing.

Ji-Cheng Zhao

Dean Of The College Of Engineering; Professor Of Materials Science And Engineering, UConn College Of Engineering

Elected to the Academy in 2025

Education

Central South University, Hunan, China, 1985, BS, Materials Science and Engineering; 1988, MS, Materials Science and Engineering; Lehigh University, 1995, PhD, Materials Science and Engineering

Professional Areas

Accelerated materials design and deployment with particular emphasis on alloys and coatings; additive manufacturing; computational thermodynamics and kinetics; micrometer-resolution measurement of materials properties; holistic integration of computational and experimental approaches; efficient and systematic measurement of phase diagrams and diffusion coefficients; ultrahigh-temperature synthesis and processing of materials.

Citation

For contributions to computational alloy design, integrated computational materials engineering, and high-throughput methods leading to accelerated design and deployment of materials.