Talk to an Aerosol Scientist

Meet AAAR 2024 Conference Chair.Shanna Ratnesar-Shumate, Ph.D., is a visiting faculty member in the Department of Chemical, Environmental, and Materials Engineering at the University of Miami.  She currently works as a Senior Science Manager at Noblis-ESI and in that role serves as a science advisor to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) Probabilistic Analysis for National Threats Hazards and Risks (PANTHR) Biological Threat Characterization (BTC) program and the Hazard Awareness and Characterization Technology Center (HAC-TC).  Prior to this position she was an Associate Professor in the Department of Pathology and Microbiology; an affiliate of the Global Center for Health Security; and a lecturer for the Biological Defense and Health Security Graduate Program at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. During this time, she served as a Fellow of the National Strategic Research Institute for the United States Department of Defense U.S. Strategic Command and an adjunct faculty member for the University of Nebraska Lincoln Morrison Center.  Previously, she served as a Senior Principal Investigator of Aerobiology in the National Biological Threat Characterization Center, at the National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center, a component of DHS S&T.  Prior to the NBACC, Shanna was a Senior Scientist in the Aerosol Sciences Section of the Asymmetric Operations Department at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.   She received her BS and ME in Environmental Engineering Sciences at the University of Florida and a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering Sciences at the University of Maryland Baltimore County. More about Dr. Shumate- https://cast.miami.edu/members/shanna-ratnesar-shumate.html

Professor Prospero earned a B.S. in chemistry at Ursinus college in Collegeville Pennsylvania in 1956 – afterwards he went on to Princeton University where he received both a M.A. and PhD studying radiochemistry and nuclear spectroscopy. Shortly after, he joined the University of Miami as a faculty member in 1963. Throughout his career, he has published more than 170 papers, which (according to google scholar) has been cited over 50,000 times.  He founded Barbados Atmospheric Chemistry Observatory in 1966. Alongside his amazing research career, Professor Prospero has received man awards, including (but not limited to) becoming a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 2003 and a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union in 2004. 

Professor Biswas is the Dean of the University of Miami College of Engineering. He is a faculty member in the Dept of Chemical, Environmental and Materials Engineering, with an affiliated appointment in the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences. Dean Biswas is a pioneer in his field recognized for applying aerosol science and engineering to multiple areas, such as energy and environmental nanotechnology, solar energy, air pollution control, and medicine. He is also a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest scientific society, for his pioneering contributions to aerosol science and engineering.For his exemplary contributions in the fundamentals of aerosol science and engineering, Pratim was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2019. He has won several teaching and research Awards including the 2018 Fuchs Award, the premier international aerosol award given to a scientist for outstanding contributions in aerosol science and technology; the 2016 Harry White Award by the International Society for Electrostatic Precipitation; the 2015 Cecil Award given for exemplary accomplishments in Environmental Engineering by the American Institute of Chemical Engineers; the 2013 David Sinclair Award given for outstanding contributions by an established scientist by the American Association for Aerosol Research; the Distinguished Faculty Award by Washington University in 2012; the Distinguished Alumni Award by the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay in 2011, the 1991 Kenneth Whitby Award given for outstanding contributions by the American Association for Aerosol Research and the Neil Wandmacher Teaching Award of the College of Engineering, University of Cincinnati in 1994.More about Dr. Pratim Biswas- https://people.miami.edu/profile/4115fc73d4ecea6e88347a04b3e78b8aAerosol and Air Quality Research Laboratory- https://aaqrl.miami.edu/ 

Welcome to Talk to an Aerosol Scientist podcast series. Stay tuned for monthly uploads and listen to aerosol scientists across the globe.