Group Members

Postdoctoral researcher

Shivshankar R. Mane

Hometown: Latur, India

Education:
- Postdoc: University of Delaware, Newark
- Postdoc: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany
- Postdoc: Humboldt University of Berlin, Germany
- Ph.D: Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Kolkata, India
- M.Sc: Dr. B. A. M. University Aurangabad, India (Chemistry Department)
- B.Sc: Dr. B. A. M. University Aurangabad, India

Favorite Molecule: Norborene.

Brief Bio: In my free time I like to listen to music and play cricket. I also spend plenty of time reading.

email: srmane@ucsb.edu
Webpage: SRMPolyarc

Postdoctoral Researchers

Graduate Researchers

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Graduate researcher

Emile Morin

Hometown: Paris, France

Education: B.S in Chemistry at Emory University (2022)
Favorite Molecule: Glutamic Acid (Umami)

Brief Bio: While you will usually find me in the lab listening to EDM music, in my free time I enjoy experimenting with cuisine and brewing kombucha. Otherwise, I spend my time reading science fiction novels, and playing a variety of board, video, and card games, such as Magic the Gathering. I also have a grey cat named Feta who is very cute, but not the brightest.

email: emilemorin@ucsb.edu

Graduate researcher

Kyle Brown

Hometown: Oktaha, Oklahoma

Education: Northeastern State University, Tahlequah, Oklahoma

Favorite Molecule: Aerobactin

Brief Bio: In my free time I enjoy baking breads and cooking, strategy games, and old Japanese monster movies. I’m also a big fan of pugs, so please introduce me if you have one.

email: ktbrown@ucsb.edu

Graduate researcher

Elana Muzzy

Hometown: Colorado Springs, Colorado

Education: B.S. in Bioengineering at UC Santa Cruz

Favorite Molecule: Dopamine

Brief Bio: In my free time I love doing absolutely anything outside especially trail running and swimming in the ocean.

email: elanamuzzy@ucsb.edu

Graduate researcher

Ben Fishler

Hometown: Santa Clarita, California

Education: B.S. in Chemistry (Emphasis in Biochemistry) at San Diego State University(2023)

Favorite Molecule: Benzene

Brief Bio: I spend my free time golfing, reading 19th century literature, playing video games with friends, and watching lots and lots of sports. I watch pretty much everything, but my absolute favorite teams to watch are the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego State Aztecs (football and basketball).

email: bfishler@ucsb.edu

Graduate researcher

An Pham

Hometown: Saigon, Vietnam/ Santa Barbara, Ca

Education: B.S in Biochemistry Cal Poly SLO

Favorite Molecule: Water

Brief Bio: I enjoy good food and sleeping. I’m typically always hungry and in need of water. A good book or TV show and some peace and quiet is nice too. Arts and crafts are entertaining so I have many art/craft hobbies when I remember them. Contrary to popular beliefs, I do not like running.

email: anvpham@ucsb.edu
Linkedin

Graduate researcher

Elif Sila Akbulut

Hometown: Ankara, Turkey

Education: B.S in Chemistry at Bilkent University, Turkey, M.S In Chemistry at Bilkent University, Turkey

Favorite Molecule: Copper Chloride

Brief Bio: In my free time I love baking, learning about the history of
European Monarchies and new languages. My cat Coco is my favorite co-
author and science buddy.

email: elifsilaakbulut@ucsb.edu

Undergraduate Researchers

Undergraduate Researcher

Matthew C. Smith

Hometown: San Diego, California

Undergraduate Education: University of California, Santa Barbara (Physics Dept.)

Favorite Molecule: banana borane (9-BBN)

Brief Bio: In my free time I love exploring math puzzles, programming games, and learning about aviation. I also enjoy swimming, skiing, hiking, and teaching others. Some of my favorite classes to tutor are Linear Algebra and Calculus.

email: matthewcsmith@ucsb.edu

Undergraduate Researcher

Erica Barandica

Hometown: San Jose, California

Undergraduate Education: University of California, Santa Barbara (Chemistry & Biochemistry Dept.)

Favorite Molecule: capsaicin

Brief Bio: I'm a third-year Undergraduate interested in Materials Science and biotechnology. My free time is spent drinking yerba mate and listening to all kinds of music.

email: ericabarandica@ucsb.edu

Undergraduate Researcher

Andrew Johnson

Hometown: Ann Arbor, Michigan

Undergraduate Education: University of California, Santa Barbara

Favorite Molecule: methyl salicylate

Brief Bio: My favorite sports are swimming and frisbee. A hobby I have recently picked up is reading manga by recommendation from friends.

email: a_johnson663@ucsb.edu

Undergraduate Researcher

Nathan Nasseri

Hometown: San Diego, California

Undergraduate Education: University of California, Santa Barbara (MCDB Dept.)

Favorite Molecule: beta-alanine

Brief Bio: In my free time I enjoy being active. I love being outdoors, discovering new music, and reading a good book (and yes I’m taking any and all recommendations).

email: nsnasseri@umail.ucsb.edu

Undergraduate Researcher

Miranda Luzanilla-Zetina

Hometown: Long Beach, California

Undergraduate Education: University of California, Santa Barbara (Chemistry & Biochemistry Department)

Favorite Molecule: caffeine

Brief Bio: Outside of class I love reading, watching movies, and drawing! I could talk about Marvel, horror movies, and sci-fi for hours.

email: mluzanilla-zetina@ucsb.edu

Undergraduate Researcher

Kimi Rubino

Hometown: Irvine, California

Undergraduate Education: University of California, Santa Barbara

Favorite Molecule: penguinone

Brief Bio: In my free time I enjoy playing soccer, reading, and baking. I’m always down for taking a walk on the beach and watching the sunset.

Email: krubino@ucsb.edu

Undergraduate Researcher

Lucas Ruggeri

Hometown: Wauwatosa, Wisconsin.

Undergraduate Education: University of California Santa Barbara (Biochemistry and molecular biology dept).

Favorite Molecule: Lactose.

Brief Bio: I am a third year undergraduate student who enjoys exercising with my friends and playing sports. I love playing/listening to music as well as traveling as much as I possibly can!

email: lucasruggeri@ucsb.edu

Undergraduate Researcher

Ian Maskiewicz

Hometown: Redlands, Ca

Undergraduate Education: University of California, Santa Barbara (Chemistry & Biochemistry Dept.)

Favorite Molecule: N-methyl-1-(3,4-methylenedioxyphenyl)propan-2-amine

Brief Bio: I like skateboarding and making manganese heptoxide. I also love hiking in Los Padres National Forest!
email: ianmaskiewicz@ucsb.edu

Undergraduate Researcher

Robert Shields

Hometown: Encinitas, Ca

Undergraduate Education: University of California, Santa Barbara (Physics Dept.)

Favorite Molecule: Caffeine

Brief Bio: I'm a third year undergraduate physics student with interests in materials science and condensed matter physics. In my free time I love doing anything outside, especially surfing and backpacking.
email: robertshields@ucsb.edu

Undergraduate Researcher

Brenden Kennedy

Hometown: San Diego, California

Undergraduate Education: University of California, Santa Barbara (Chemistry and Biochemistry Dept.)

Favorite Molecule: Water

Brief Bio: In my free time I love being in nature, whether that be surfing, fishing, backpacking, or camping.
email: brendenkennedy@ucsb.edu

Website Manager

Website Manager and Undergraduate Researcher

Ben Krey

Hometown: Lafayette, California

Undergraduate Education: University of California, Santa Barbara (Chemistry & Biochemistry Dept.)

Favorite Molecule: Chromyl chloride

Brief Bio: I am a third year undergraduate interested in renewable energy and electrochemistry. In my free time I am a member of the powerlifting team at UCSB and I'm learning how to code in Python.