I am an Assistant Research Professor and Manager of the DRI Luminescence Laboratory (DRILL). My research combines field observations and sedimentology, remote sensing (the interpretation of air photos, satellite imagery, Digital Elevation Models or LiDAR imagery), and geochronological methods to gain insights into the style and rate of landscape change and human/environment interactions in the Quaternary Period. My research includes developing luminescence dating techniques to refine temporal records in archaeology and geology, and I am the writer of The Glow Curve Blog: https://theglowcurve.org/blog.
Kevin Heintz
My specialty is data acquisition for groundwater and hydrometeorological applications, especially remote environmental sensing and aquifer characterization.
Other research interests include numerical modeling of hydraulics and heat transport as well as evaluating the functionality of springs and riparian areas.
Philippe Vidon
Executive Director for the Division of Earth and Ecosystem Sciences
Philippe obtained his PhD in Geography from York University, ON, Canada in 2004, and subsequently occupied professor positions at Indiana University – Purdue University in Indianapolis (IUPUI) and at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry a.k.a. ESF, in Syracuse, NY. There he served as Director of the Hydrological Systems Science Council, among other leadership appointments. His most recent research has focused on a broad range of topics including (but not limited to): watershed management, water quality, soil biogeochemistry (e.g., N, P, C, Hg cycling and soil N2O, CO2, and CH4 emissions), bioenergy, and the impact of beaver dam analogues on floodplain hydrogeomorphology and landscape resiliency.
David AuCoin
As a graduate student and postdoctoral researcher, I spent eight years studying herpes viral replication and egress. Since then, I have devoted the last 17 years developing antibody-based diagnostics and therapeutics for infectious diseases. Specifically, one of my areas of focus is targeting secreted microbial antigens for diagnosis. Secreted antigens make ideal targets for direct detection and diagnosis of acute microbial infections. My laboratory has developed novel strategies that have allowed for the identification of secreted/shed antigens or “biomarkers”. Following identification of candidate biomarkers, large panels of high affinity monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are generated and selection of optimal pairs for capture and detection is performed. The panels of mAbs are fully evaluated by determining subclass/subtype, affinity, and binding characteristics. Some of the current projects in my laboratory include development prototype diagnostics for melioidosis, Lyme disease, leptospirosis, Rift Valley fever, tularemia, viral hepatitis, and Ebola virus disease. Each of these projects involves identification of biomarkers secreted or expressed by each microbe and development of mAb libraries targeting each biomarker. Total funding to my laboratory over the previous 10 years has totaled roughly $12M, mainly from the National Institute of Health and the Department of Defense. Throughout the course of my research career, I have had the privilege to advice 56 trainees, ranging from undergraduates though post-doctoral fellows.
Brad Sion
Brad Sion is an Assistant Research Professor of Geomorphology at the Desert Research Institute. He has a BS in Geology and Environmental Geoscience from the College of Charleston, and an MS and PhD in Hydrology from the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology with a focus on geomorphology and Quaternary geology. Brad began his research career in central New Mexico studying soils and landscape evolution. His research has expanded to areas in southern Nevada, central and southern California, and parts of the midwestern US, and focuses on soil geomorphology and applied soils research. He currently participates in a wide range of research projects that specifically rely on the use of soil datasets to infer landscape characteristics and processes. Examples include vehicle trafficability, surficial geologic mapping, effects of Quaternary climate change on landscape stability, and timing and rates of geomorphic processes.
Brian Schilling
Professor Brian K. Schilling joined the Kinesiology and Nutrition Sciences department in 2016, and teaches courses in research methods, scientific writing & communication, and military/first responder human performance.
He directs the Physically Demanding Professions Research Laboratory, which focuses on the physical demands among military, law enforcement, fire, and rescue personnel, and also how to best train to meet these demands. He has an extensive publication record, with over 150 papers and grant proposals in the field of human performance. Dr. Schilling also focuses on Exercise Physiology as a STEM discipline, to maximize workforce development in human performance. He frequently gives guest lectures that focus on evidence-led practice in human performance, specifically for both scientists and practitioners.
Schilling earned his master’s in exercise science from Appalachian State University in 1999, and his Ph.D. in biology from the University of Memphis in 2004. He is an Associate Editor of the Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research.
Mohamed Trabia
Introduction
Dr. Mohamed Trabia is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering since 2000 at UNLV. His research interests include design and optimization of mechanical systems, characterization of material properties under dynamic loading, system identification and control of smart actuators. Dr. Trabia has been the author of more than 200 technical journal and conference papers. He was involved in multiple funded research projects. He is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME).
Joshua Island
I lead the Nanoscale Physics Group in the Physics Dept. at UNLV. We are focused on studying low dimensional materials in electronic devices. We use a combination of low temperature and high frequency probes to study these devices and discern exotic phenomena that arise as a result of confinement and interactions. We are principally interested in how low temperature phases evolve under dimensionality reduction and when subjected to high magnetic fields and strong external electromagnetic drives.
Kevin Shoemaker
Broadly, I’m interested in coupling ecological data (e.g., census records, mark-recapture data, remote sensing) with simulation models, statistics and machine learning to support evidence-based conservation and wildlife management.
M. Rashed Khan
Khan Lab@UNR aims to study, design, and develop soft materials, unconventional processes, and reconfigurable micro/nanodevices that can be harnessed and optimized further for advanced biochemical, biomedical, and physicochemical applications. The lab is also keen to establish a multidisciplinary smart-manufacturing research group, including researchers from various backgrounds. Through short and long-term active collaboration, Khan Lab@UNR would like to address fundamental challenges associated with soft micro-device fabrication, 3D/4D (bio)printing, and patterning, advanced hybrid sensor manufacturing, biomedical device development – which are still unnoticed and under-explored, and need further investigation.
Additionally, our group also focuses on computational neuroscience and neurobioengineering. Under this research direction, we study human brain, brain functions, brain structure so that the established knowledge can be broadly applicable to general biomecical science and knowledge of the brain and brain-diseases.