Rate My Professor Rungun Nathan

Dr. Rungun Nathan is a Professor of Engineering at Pennsylvania State University Berks, serving as Program Chair of Mechanical Engineering since 2013 and advancing from Assistant Professor in 2007 to full Professor in 2021. He directs the Berks Learning Factory and the Mechatronics and Intelligent Systems Laboratory, while advising the Robotics club. Previously, he was Visiting Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Villanova University from 1999 to 2007, where he developed the undergraduate Mechatronics minor, a design elective combining theory and hands-on labs, and multimedia learning modules for mechanics courses using differentiated instruction. Earlier roles include Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania (1999-2000) and research positions at Alfred I. duPont Institute and Indian Institute of Science. His academic credentials comprise a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Drexel University (1999), M.S. in Systems Science from Louisiana State University (1993), Postgraduate Diploma in Electronics Design Technology from Indian Institute of Science (1985), and B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from PESCE, Mysore University (1984).

Dr. Nathan's research focuses on biomechanics, soft porous lubrication, fluid-structure interactions, cavitation-induced brain injury, unmanned vehicles such as ornithopters, frisbees, and Samara seeds, mechatronics, and engineering education technologies. In collaboration with Dr. Qianhong Wu at Villanova University, he has produced impactful publications including "Cavitation causes brain injury" (Physics of Fluids, 2021), "How to deform an egg yolk? On the study of soft matter deformation in a liquid environment" (Physics of Fluids, 2021), "Multiscale Soft Porous Lubrication" (Tribology International, 2019), "On the Gravity-Driven Sliding Motion of a Planar Board on a Tilted Soft Porous Layer" (Tribology Letters, 2019), and "Experimental study on the lift generation inside a random synthetic porous layer under rapid compaction" (Experimental Thermal and Fluid Science, 2012), amassing over 500 citations per Google Scholar. He has secured grants like the Summer Faculty Research Fellowship ($10,000, 2008) and received the Danielle Richards Outstanding Advising Award (2020). Dr. Nathan reviews for ASEE Mechanics Division, Journal of Engineering Education, and ASME, and developed courses EMET 230 (Computerized Input/Output) and EMET 326 (Mechanical Drives) at Penn State Berks.