Researchers studying the origins of novel traits in organisms, the exotic properties of anyons and their implications for quantum computing, and the fundamental understanding of extreme weather are among the five Cornell assistant professors who recently received National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development Awards.

Each researcher will receive a minimum of $400,000 over five years from the program, which supports early-career faculty who “have the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization,” according to the NSF. Each project must include an educational component.

Recent recipients from Cornell:

Leslie Babonis, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (a shared department between the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences; her appointment is in A&S), will use her award to advance understanding of the protein-protein interactions necessary for the development of the stinging apparatus in diverse types of nematocytes, which are stinging cells found only in corals, jellyfish and their relatives. These creatures, known as cnidarians, eject a tiny, venom-laden harpoon from a pressurized compartment inside a cell. The compartment, and the harpoon it contains, are constructed of an unusual protein called minicollagen. Babonis’ work will aim to advance the understanding of how novel proteins give rise to novel traits like the nematocyte. The educational goal is to prepare undergraduates to pursue careers in integrative research through development of a research-based lab course in evolutionary cell biology.

Jack Hare, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (Cornell Engineering), will use his award to develop a new platform for producing turbulent plasma in the laboratory, and new methods for measuring plasma turbulence. In general, turbulence is hard to predict and important for weather forecasting and air travel. In plasmas – the hot, ionized gases that make up most of the visible universe – turbulence plays an important role in a wide range of astrophysical phenomena, from black hole accretion disks to the interstellar medium, where the heating from turbulence enables the formation of organic molecules, the building blocks of life. Plasma turbulence also limits the performance of potential future fusion energy reactors. Educational aspects will include an effort to develop an open-access plasma laboratory class, which includes designing, building and testing experiments that can be reproduced by other instructors.

Xiaomeng Liu, Department of Physics (A&S), will use his award to investigate anyons – emergent particles in two-dimensional materials – and their exotic properties, which hold potential for future fault-tolerant quantum computing. In the 3D universe, all particles are classified as either fermions or bosons, but more exotic variants exist in two dimensions. The research team will search for signatures of anyons by developing novel microscopic methods and exploring new classes of quantum materials. Liu’s team will work with outreach programs to increase public interest in quantum physics through hands-on demonstration tours. They’ll also modernize university experimental physics education by incorporating quantum information and machine learning methods, while establishing an online platform to make 2D material preparation more accessible to the broader research community.

Angeline Pendergrass, Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences (a shared department between Cornell Engineering and CALS; her appointment is in CALS), will use her award to further her study of extreme precipitation. The funded work will advance understanding of the extreme tail of precipitation by placing it in the context of the entire intensity distribution of precipitation. It will focus on precipitation distribution and its dependence on spatial and temporal scales, and the comparative roles of aerosol and greenhouse gas forcing in determining precipitation distribution. Tackling these problems is motivated by the need to better understand the value of high-resolution modeling for analyzing precipitation extremes, and to figure out why extreme precipitation decreases despite holding temperatures fixed in model projections. Educational goals include providing research experiences for undergraduates; training students on the use of data for real-world problems; and integrating the science results into graduate- and undergraduate-level courses.

Chris Roh ’12, Department of Biological and Environmental Engineering (CALS), will use his award to further his study of whirligig beetles – aquatic insects that primarily live on the water surface. They display rapid but controlled movement and sensitive perception that enables seamless navigation, key for predator avoidance, prey capture and multi-environment propulsion. The whirligig represents a model for autonomous systems: To translate its movements into robotics or related fields, the underlying fluid dynamics must be understood. Findings could lead to the development of miniature autonomous vehicles and robots functioning in multiple environments, with implications for search-and-rescue missions, precision agriculture and national defense. And through the development of affordable and environmentally friendly fluid dynamics tools, students will gain hands-on experience, allowing them to create and observe natural flow, anchoring fluid mechanics concepts to reality.