John Dabiri’s innovative research on jellyfish propulsion can be used in a variety of applications, from designing wind turbines and wind farms to studying how blood flows through the heart. Photo Courtesy Caltech
John Dabiri, Centennial Professor of Aeronautics and Mechanical Engineering at Caltech and 2025 recipient of the National Medal of Science. Photo Credit Caltech
JROMC NEWS RELEASE
The J. Robert Oppenheimer Memorial Committee (JROMC) will host its 52nd memorial lecture at 7 p.m. Monday, June 2, in the Duane Smith Auditorium,1300 Diamond Drive. John Dabiri, Caltech’s Centennial Professor of Aeronautics and Mechanical Engineering, will discuss “Jellyfish-Inspired Engineering”. The talk is free, and audience members are invited to a reception with refreshments after the lecture.
With a bachelor’s degree in mechanical and aerospace engineering from Princeton and a doctorate in bioengineering from Caltech, Dabiri takes a biology-inspired approach to engineering. He uses decades of data from analyzing jellyfish to help solve significant, real-world problems. For example, the swirling currents produced by jellyfish can be used to improve submarines, to design more efficient wind farms, and to diagnose heart problems noninvasively before symptoms appear. In addition, jellyfish outfitted with tiny electronics might be used to study the ocean—for significantly less than the cost of deep-sea vessels.
In a discussion on the podcast “The Joy of Why,” Dabiri envisions that “if we combine what we know about jellyfish with all the tools at our disposal as engineers, really the sky’s the limit as to what we can develop.”
At a White House ceremony earlier this year, Dabiri received the National Medal of Science, the country’s highest honor for exemplary achievement and leadership in science and engineering.
Honored for his research in aeronautical and biological engineering, the award citation notes that his “work on biological fluid dynamics, turbulence, and biological propulsion has advanced the clean energy future—leading to more efficient wind turbines and wind farms that make the world cleaner, safer, and more sustainable for future generations.”
“This honor is really a recognition of 20 years of students and postdocs with whom I’ve been fortunate to work on a variety of projects,” Dabiri said. “My wish is that this recognition is encouragement for them and me to continue pursuing unconventional ideas despite inevitable failures along the way. And hopefully our best work is still ahead of us.”
Dabiri has been honored with numerous other awards, including a MacArthur Fellowship (“genius grant”) and the Alan T. Waterman Award from the National Science Foundation (NSF), which grants $1 million (over five years) for scientific research. In 2013 Dabiri was named one of MIT Technology Review’s “35 Innovators Under 35” and one of Popular Science’s “Brilliant 10” in 2008.
About The J. Robert Oppenheimer Memorial Committee:
The J. Robert Oppenheimer Memorial Committee is a nonprofit organization that honors the legacy and spirit of the Scientific Director of the Manhattan Project by promoting the love of learning and the power of discovery in ways that have a positive impact on our world. With financial support from our community donors, the committee honors Oppenheimer’s legacy through thought-provoking public lectures by distinguished speakers, a scholarship program for high school students, and science-education outreach activities in Northern New Mexico. For more information, please see www.JROMC.org.