(From left) VLS and graduate student researchers Vaishnavi Kulkarni and Maya Rohrer working in the lab (Winter 2026)
(From left) Undergraduate student researchers Dharyl Ong Licudine and Simran Chawla working on the first exploratory batch of bioremediation experiments (Winter 2026)
Undergraduate student researcher Dharyl Ong Licudine in front of the growth chamber that will be used for the bioremediation experiments (Winter 2026)
(From left) Graduate student research Vaishnavi Kulkarni, research scientist Cierra Mae Venzon and VLS in front of the testing machine (Fall 2025)
Testing samples for the Mykos project. From left, clockwise: student researcher Mostafa Hashem, Prof. Christina Cogdell, student researcher Brandon Yee, VLS, student researchers Kuval Bora, Angel Magana Cuevas, Vaishnavi Kulkarni (Spring 2025)
(From left) Undergraduate student researchers Vaishnavi Kulkarni and Changxin Shao plus VLS testing a mycelium sample prepared by 2025 Biodesign students (class taught by Prof. Christina Cogdell), May 2025.
VLS and Solomon Belette, CEO and Founder of US Africa Initiatives, at the 2025 UC Davis Global Affairs Reception
VLS and Prof. Christina Cogdell (Dept. of Design) at the 2025 UC Davis Global Affairs Reception
Undergraduate student researcher Ephraim Aung, Fall 2024.
Undergraduate student researcher Supphakrit “Pun” Daorueng, Fall 2024.
Undergraduate student researcher Supphakrit “Pun” Daorueng working on the custom-made rotor test stand for the sustainable wind turbine blade project, Fall 2024.
Undergraduate student researcher Ephraim Aung working on the custom-made rotor test stand for the sustainable wind turbine blade project, Fall 2024.
(From left) Undergraduate student researchers Shivani Torres-Lal, Rishi Donapati, Ephraim Aung, Alexis “Lexie” Vlavianos and Monta Vista high-school student Damon Lee, preparing biodegradable glue for sandwich mycelium composites, in Summer 2024.
UCD Young Scholars Program awardee Lyka Raymundo working on her project, Summer 2024. Photo by TJ Ushing.
UCD Young Scholars Program awardee Lyka Raymundo working on her project, Summer 2024. Photo by TJ Ushing.
Young Scholars Program awardee Damon Lee working on his project, Summer 2024. Photo by TJ Ushing.
Young Scholars Program awardee Damon Lee working on his project, Summer 2024. Photo by TJ Ushing.
Undergraduate student research Rishi Donapati working on test-stand for cantilever beam, Spring 2024
Undergraduate student research Jassan Gill working on test-stand for cantilever beam, Spring 2024
Undergraduate student research Trevor Ottoson working on test-stand for cantilever beam, Spring 2024
Undergraduate student researchers Jassan Gill (left) and Simran Chawla, harvesting fava beans at UC Davis plot, in Spring 2024. The biomass is used to grow mycelium composites.
Undergraduate student researcher Zeyyad Borham after tagging mycelium composite samples for compression testing, July 2023.
Article in the Fall 2023 UC Davis Alumni magazine
Back cover of the Fall 2023 UC Davis alumni magazine
Mira Loma High-school Summer 2023 intern Bhavya Mamnani holding a sample of biodegradable glue in front of the prototype bamboo/mycelium wind turbine blade, June 2023.
(From left) Undergraduate student researchers Nick Gallo and Dominic Soufl, research engineer Shuhao Wan, undergraduate student researcher Fernando Hernandez Sanchez, and VLS, showing the mycelium/bamboo wind turbine blade project at the inauguration of the Diane Bryant Engineering Student Design Center, May 2023
March 2023: building a biodegradable mycelium/bamboo wind turbine blade, to replace the non biodegradable reinforced plastic blades of a commercial 400 W turbine. From left to right: Dominic Soufl, Shuhao Wan, Nicholas Gallo, Connor Prescott, Fernando Hernandez Sanchez. Shuhao Wan is a research engineer, the other people are undergraduate student researchers.
(April 2023) From left: undergraduate student researchers Fernando Hernandez Sanchez and Nicholas Gallo and research engineer Shuhao Wan, in front of the UCD field where VLS planted cover crop by hand in late Fall 2022. The cover crop is harvested and eaten, and the stalks are used as the nitrogen-rich food for mycelium.
(From left) Undergraduate student researcher Nick Gallo, research engineer Shuhao Wan, undergraduate student researchers Fernando Hernandez Sanchez and Shivani Torres-Lal, ready to harvest fava beans to be used as farm-to-table-to-lab (mycelium) research, May 2023
Undergraduate student researcher Shivani Torres-Lal while harvesting fava beans, May 2023
(From left) Fernando Hernandez Sanchez, Shuhao Wan and Nick Gallo in the midst of fava bean harvesting, May 2023
Master of Fine Arts student Alejandra Ruiz (Dept. of Design) holding samples made with textile waste (Winter 2023).
(From left) Research engineer Shuhao Wan, undergraduate student researcher Faress Zwain and Ph.D. student Shree Nagarkar testing polymer devices for women’s health, Fall 2022
(From left) Undergraduate student Eva Zhou, Ph.D. student Shree Nagarkar, research engineers Shuhao Wan and Alex Weinstein testing strain gauges and sandwich composites, Summer 2022
Front: (left) Ph.D. student Shree Nagarkar and research engineer Shuhao Wan; (back left) Lt. Col. and Ph.D student Daniel Nelson, graduate student Early Cobb III. Summer 2022.
UCD Graduate Studies-funded Summer research scholar Aidelen Montoya (CSU San Marcos) presenting her project at the end of the program, Summer 2022
(from left) Research engineers Alex Weinstein and Shuhao Wan, Ph.D. student Shree Nagarkar and UCD Graduate Studies Summer research scholar Aidelen Montoya (CSU San Marcos) after the preparation of mycelium/bamboo/biomass samples, Summer 2022
M.S. student David Guinn after testing a 3D-printed composite sample under impact (Summer 2022).
Undergraduate student researcher Shuhao Wan (left) and research engineer Alex Weinstein tested mycelium sandwich composites under impact (Winter 2022).
(Left) Research engineer Alex Weinstein (left) and undergraduate student researcher Shuhao Wan testing mycelium sandwich composites under bending (Spring 2022).
Lt. Col. and Ph.D. student Daniel Nelson about to test 3D printed polymer with an embedded strain gauge (Fall 2021).
(From left) Undergraduate student researcher Kyle Jung, Lt. Col. and Ph.D. student Daniel Nelson, undergraduate student researcher Alex Weinstein discussing the LabView code collecting data from a 3D printed polymer under bending (Fall 2021).
Graduate student Samira Iqbal acquiring Electrical Resistance Tomography data from a sample tested under UV-C radiation (Fall 2021).
Undergraduate student researcher Nick Loftus cutting samples for the project funded by UC Davis The Green Initiative Fund (from Summer 2021). Nick is also an employee of UC Davis Craft Center.
Left to right: undergraduate student researchers Kyle Jung, Alex Weinstein and Nick Loftus and graduate student Early Cobb III are being trained in testing biomaterial samples, part of UC Davis The Green Initiative Fund project (Summer 2021).
Biologist Vanessa Salandez and undergraduate student researchers Alex Weinstein and Kyle Jung show three bags of biomaterials that were just autoclaved in the laboratory of collaborator Dr. Nitin Nitin (Bioagricultural Engineering/Food Science and Technology). Project funded by UC Davis The Green Initiative Fund (from Summer 2021).
Undergraduate student researcher Alex Weinstein using the press loaned by collaborator Dr. Katia Vega (Department of Design), for the project funded by UC Davis The Green Initiative Fund (Summer 2021).
Lincoln High-school Summer 2021 intern Alyssa Rizzardo and undergraduate student researcher Kyle Jung preparing a sandwich sample (funded by UC Davis The Green Initiative Fund).
Undergraduate student researcher Santiago Mejia (left) and Alex Weinstein (right) made a sample with mycelium + biomass and plywood, for structural applications (project funded by UC Davis The Green Initiative Fund, from Summer 2021).
Davis Senior High-School Summer 2021 intern Nathan Fanous preparing a sandwich panel (project funded by UC Davis The Green Initiative Fund)
Undergraduate student researcher Kyle Jung (left) and graduate student Early Cobb III (right) are preparing samples using a mold that was designed by Early and 3D-printed by Maj. Daniel Nelson at UC Davis Craft Center. The project is funded by UC Davis The Green Initiative Fund from Summer 2021.
A happily vaccinated VLS, with and without mask, May 2021.
Group photo, Spring 2019. From left to right, front row: VLS, Linda Wu, David Bartolo, Shreya Rastogi, Adriana Henriquez, Duha Bader. From left to right, back row: Dara Sobati, Jon Thomas, Austin Pastrnak, Max Fors. Not present: Sean Comick, Stephen Foster, Brett Hecker, Benjamin Chia.
Sean Comick (2019)
(From left) M.S. student Austin Pastrnak, undergraduate students Adriana Henriquez and David Bartolo at the 2019 NASA Exploration Science Forum
Stephen Foster (2018-2019)
From left to right: Summer intern Ghufran Alkhamis (Stanford University), Matthew Gabel, Taner Dubie, Adriana Henriquez at Sacramento State University (2018)
Group picture, December 2017. From left to right, back row: VLS, Cari Pouchnik, Chris Chighizola, Austin Pastrnak, Jon Thomas, Kevin Li, Ardalan Sofi, Manuel Cordova. Front row: Oliver Torrealba Aguilar, Adriana Henriquez, Shreya Rastogi. Not present: Pedro Garcia Carrillo, Matthew Gabel, Trent Storm and Ari Wargon.
Brett Bacharach (2017)
Chris O’ Keefe, Spring 2016.
Group picture, Spring 2016. From left to right, front row: VLS, Dominique True, Cari Pouchnik, Adriana Henriquez, Milani Lyman, Ari Wargon, Travis Gildner. From left to right, back row: Andrew Westle, Kieran Wolk, Angelo Magliola, Chris O’ Keefe, Danny Reid, Nico Marinkovich. Not present: Shreya Rastogi.
(Left) Andrew Westle and Chris O’ Keefe (2015)
Brian Pinto (2015)
Dayane Marques Oliveira (2015)
(Front right) Miguel Duran at the National Research Center for Earthquake Engineering, Taiwan (2015)
From left to right: Robert Pires, Destiny Garcia, Alyssa “Nikki” Yambao, Erik Quiroz (2014)
Steven Kern (2014)
Stephanie Zhu (2014/2015)
Group photo, Fall 2014. From left to right, front row: Brian Pinto, Jose de Jesus “Chuz” Ku-Herrera, Stephanie Zhu, Miguel Duran. From left to right, back row: VLS, Destiny Garcia, Szymon Furtak, Nico Marinkovich, Daniel Reid, Angelo Magliola.
Group photo, Fall 2013. From left to right: Steven Kern, Alyssa “Nikki” Yambao, Robert Pires, VLS, Antonio Gomez, Erik Quiroz, Serena Ferraro.
Serena Ferraro (2012-2014)
Siavash Peiday Saheli (2012)
Cory Brandli (2010-2011)
Group photo, Summer 2009. From left to right, front row: Luciana Arronche, Anais Farrugia, Yao, Charles Winkelmann, VLS, Dr. Wahyu Lestari. From left to right, back row: Bryan Loyola, Brent Simon, Sertan Yesil, Robert Ireland, Hong-Yue “Ray” Tang.
Group photo 2008. Left to right, front row: Yong Yin Chuah, Gordon Kwong, Samuel Kim, E. Alex Russell, Charles Winkelmann. Left to right, back row: Brent Simon, Christie English, VLS, Bryan Loyola, Michael Kopriva.
