Faculty Spotlight – December 2023
Dr Vida Jamali
Vida Jamali earned her Ph.D. in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering from Rice University under the guidance of Prof. Matteo Pasquali and her B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Sharif University of Technology. Vida was a postdoctoral researcher in Prof. Paul Alivisatos lab at UC Berkeley and Kavli Energy Nanoscience Institute before joining GeorgiaTech. The Jamali Research Group uses experimental, theoretical, and computational tools such as liquid phase transmission electron microscopy, rheology, statistical and colloidal thermodynamics, and machine learning to study the underlying physical principles that govern the dynamics, statistics, mechanics, and self-organization of nanostructured soft materials, in and out of thermal equilibrium, from both fundamental and technological aspects.
Who is a woman-in-stem pioneer who is an inspiration to you?
Marie Curie. Since I was a kid, I always wanted to be like her. She was the first woman to win a Nobel prize (and not just one, but two!).
Who was a woman in your life who mentored you, or provided support?
The first person who played a major role in my career was Nikta Fakhri who was a senior student in my PhD group at the time. She convinced me to join my PhD group. We barely overlapped in the group, but the mentorship didn’t stop there. I still ask her for her help whenever I have questions. She is now a professor of physics at MIT.
What advice would you give to young women engineers?
The first is to believe in yourself and to be confident. The second is to seek mentorship, you may miss out on opportunities if you don’t ask for it. So, don’t be shy about seeking mentorship. The third is to never stop learning and challenging your brain.