My research focuses on the development of theoretical and computational approaches for understanding, predicting, and managing complex dynamical systems with application to both built and natural environments. I am specifically interested in three synergistic core areas: (1) engineering resilience to extreme events, (2) adapting decisions in the face of climate change, and (3) bridging data to decisions.

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I work at the scientific interface of Civil Engineering, Computer Science,   Environmental and Ecological Science, and Data Science. I have worked on multiple applications, including reducing the environmental impacts of Food-Energy-Water (FEW) systems in and around cities, and modeling, learning, and controlling population dynamics of biological species such as fisheries under the the great uncertainty caused by environmental variations and climate change.

My Ph.D. work focused on developing theoretical and computational methods and tools for smarter monitoring and control of civil infrastructure systems. Specifically, I developed methods for robust decision making about operation and maintenance of our infrastructure, learning their deterioration from sensor measurements, and quantifying the value of information for prioritizing the future data collection.

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Employment

USRA, NASA Ames Research Center        August 2019 - present
Senior Scientist
​Intelligent Systems Division

eIQ Mobility                                                  April 2019 - July 2019
Lead Data Scientist 

University of California Berkeley              Jan 2016 - March 2019
Postdoctoral Scholar, Boettiger Group, eCAL
Lecturer, Data Science for Smart Cities
Department of Environmental Science, Policy & Management
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering

Carnegie Mellon University                          Jan 2013 - Dec 2015
Research Assistant, Pozzi Group
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering

Virginia Tech                                                  Aug 2011 - Dec 2012
Research Assistant, RAAMAC Lab
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering

Education

Carnegie Mellon University                          Jan 2013 - Dec 2015
Ph.D., Civil & Environmental Engineering, GPA: 4.0
Thesis: System-level Adaptive Monitoring and Control of Infrastructures: A POMDP-based Framework

Virginia Tech                                                  Aug 2011 - Dec 2012
M.Sc., Civil Engineering, GPA: 3.96
Thesis: Automated 2D Detection of Construction Resources in Support of Automated Performance Assessment of Construction Operations

University of Tehran                                    Aug 2007 - July 2011
B.Sc., Civil Engineering, GPA: 17.11/20