Tanya Brown-Giammanco is a meteorologist and wind engineer who serves as NIST’s director of Disaster and Failure Studies. She has conducted numerous studies on hurricanes, tornadoes, hailstorms and wildfires, and their effects on buildings. In her role at NIST, she oversees disaster research studies and National Construction Safety Team investigations.
Gary Steinberg is Supply Chain Advisor for the California Manufacturing Technology Consulting, part of the MEP National Network™. He is a global supply chain specialist with extensive experience in high tech, computer, electronics, and aerospace industries.
Michael Ogata is a computer scientist in the Applied Cybersecurity Division. Over his 18-year career at NIST he has worked on digital forensics, healthcare standards, mobile application security, cybersecurity for public safety, and cybersecurity for the smart grid. Michael loves science fiction and proudly calls himself a Star Wars fan AND a Trekkie.
Mauro Zammarano is a materials research engineer in the Fire Research Division at NIST. Before permanently joining NIST, he received a Ph.D. in engineering and materials science from University of Trieste in Italy, was a postdoc at the Polytechnic Institute of New York University, and was an assistant professor at American University. He is currently the leader of the Reduced Flammability Furniture Project at NIST. Outside of NIST, Mauro enjoys traveling, photography and growing “deadly” carnivorous plants.
Brian Lawn obtained his Ph.D. in physics at the University of Western Australia in 1964. He then studied as a postdoctoral fellow in the School of Physics at the University of Bristol and the Department of Engineering and Materials Science at Brown University. From 1968 to 1981, Brian was a professor in physics at the University of New South Wales. In 1981 he joined the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and in 1987 was appointed to the position of NIST Fellow. Brian has published over 340 research papers, with 50,000-plus citations. In 2001 Brian was elected to the U.S. National Academy of Engineering, and in 2012 to the Australian Academy of Science. He was awarded an honorary doctorate in engineering in 2008 by his alma mater at the University of Western Australia. Brian is a Distinguished Life Member of the American Ceramic Society.
Travis Hill is a Senior Engineering Project Manager at Mississippi State University CAVS Extension, the Mississippi MMA-MEP service provider. His expertise includes simulation modeling and analysis and decision support technologies.
Steven Salisbury is a senior at Valley Christian High School in San Jose, California. He plans to pursue mechanical engineering in college, and possibly an M.S. after that in the same field. When he is not in school, he likes playing for his esports team, playing soccer, working on graphic design and programming updated versions of classic board/video games, such as Tetris, Minesweeper and Mastermind.