I received a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of California at Davis in 1982 and the PhD in Chemical Engineering from Caltech in 1988. Following a postdoctoral year in the Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics at the University of Cambridge, I joined the faculty of the (now) School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard University, where I worked among an talented, scholarly and supportive group of faculty in Mechanical Engineering. In 1994 I received  the Joseph R. Levenson Memorial Award and the Phi Beta Kappa teaching Prize, which are the only two teaching awards given to faculty in Harvard College and then 2000 I was named a Harvard College Professor for  contributions to undergraduate education. In July 2009 I moved to Princeton University in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.

"As I started as a faculty member I realized that what I enjoyed most was learning, and I was able to benefit from the interplay I found possible between teaching and research. The synergies helped me over many years to maintain the joy I experience when teaching, while also helping me learn to exercise more creativity in research.

Professional development has many facets and the Graduate School can help with developing these skills. There are many possible paths to take after Princeton, and a core of good professional approaches, including soft skills, can help take you far, quite likely in directions you never imagined."