IGERT Trainees

2007-2008 Trainees

Jumana Mahmoud Abu-Khalaf: I grew up in Amman, Jordan and went to school there. In 2005, I received a B.S. in Mechatronic Engineering from the University of Jordan. Currently, I'm working on the design and analysis of stretchable fingernail sensors for the measurement of fingertip touch force with Dr. Stephen Mascaro.

Josh de Bever: Josh earned his Bachelor's degree in Physics and Computer Science and his Masters in Physics from the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, Canada. While in London, he collaborated with a group from the University of Utah developing Magnetic Resonance Imaging hardware, and this eventually led to his discovery of the Robotics program. Currently Josh is doing research with the High Intensity Focused Ultrasound lab which is developing a medical robot that kills cancerous tumors non-invasively and without ionizing radiation.

Philip Dyer: I'm originally from a small secret town in Pennsylvania. After graduating high school, I was fortunate enough to join the Meyerhoff Scholarship Program at UMBC, where I earned my B.S. in physics and my M.S. in mechanical engineering. My masters research was focused on analyzing gait patterns of cows, which involved many a smelly trip to dairy farms. I've since upgraded and am now at the U doing research on gait analysis of people with Parkinson's disease with Dr. Stacy Bamberg.

Mitch Frankel: I grew up outside Washington D.C. in Fairfax, VA. I received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Kinesiology with a minor in Biochemistry from the University of Colorado at Boulder in August 1997. I then moved to Bozeman, MT, originally to live peacefully while applying to medical schools. While medical school was not for me, I was able to live in Montana for ten wonderful years enjoying the mountain lifestyle and later pursued a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering, which I received with honors in December 2005 from Montana State University - Bozeman. I am currently working with Dr. Sanford Meek on upper-limb neuroprosthetics, specifically in the realm of multi-DOF electromyographic control and neural signal conditioning.

Brian Gleeson: Brian grew up in Colorado and received an BS in engineering physics from the University of Colorado. After teaching for a year in China, working for a while, and traveling around, Brian decided it was time to go back to school. He is currently working with Dr. Provancher on tactile robotic interfaces.

Cris Phipps: Cris Phipps is a Utah native. He received a combined B.S./M.S. degree from the University of Utah and is continuing his research as a Ph.D. student. He works with Prof. Mark Minor on hybrid mobility robots.

	Jumana Mahmoud Abu-Khalaf: I grew up in Amman, Jordan and went to school there. In 2005, I received a B.S. in Mechatronic Engineering from the University of Jordan. Currently, I'm working on the design and analysis of stretchable fingernail sensors for the measurement of fingertip touch force with Dr. Stephen Mascaro.
	Josh de Bever: Josh earned his Bachelor's degree in Physics and Computer Science and his Masters in Physics from the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, Canada. While in London, he collaborated with a group from the University of Utah developing Magnetic Resonance Imaging hardware, and this eventually led to his discovery of the Robotics program. Currently Josh is doing research with the High Intensity Focused Ultrasound lab which is developing a medical robot that kills cancerous tumors non-invasively and without ionizing radiation.
	Philip Dyer: I'm originally from a small secret town in Pennsylvania. After graduating high school, I was fortunate enough to join the Meyerhoff Scholarship Program at UMBC, where I earned my B.S. in physics and my M.S. in mechanical engineering. My masters research was focused on analyzing gait patterns of cows, which involved many a smelly trip to dairy farms. I've since upgraded and am now at the U doing research on gait analysis of people with Parkinson's disease with Dr. Stacy Bamberg.
	Mitch Frankel: I grew up outside Washington D.C. in Fairfax, VA. I received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Kinesiology with a minor in Biochemistry from the University of Colorado at Boulder in August 1997. I then moved to Bozeman, MT, originally to live peacefully while applying to medical schools. While medical school was not for me, I was able to live in Montana for ten wonderful years enjoying the mountain lifestyle and later pursued a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering, which I received with honors in December 2005 from Montana State University - Bozeman. I am currently working with Dr. Sanford Meek on upper-limb neuroprosthetics, specifically in the realm of multi-DOF electromyographic control and neural signal conditioning.
	Brian Gleeson: Brian grew up in Colorado and received an BS in engineering physics from the University of Colorado. After teaching for a year in China, working for a while, and traveling around, Brian decided it was time to go back to school. He is currently working with Dr. Provancher on tactile robotic interfaces.
	Cris Phipps: Cris Phipps is a Utah native. He received a combined B.S./M.S. degree from the University of Utah and is continuing his research as a Ph.D. student. He works with Prof. Mark Minor on hybrid mobility robots.