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ASU students receive prestigious 'Faculty for the Future' fellowship


Ruirui Han (left) and Gayatri Marliyani (right)
April 16, 2014

Two graduate students in Arizona State University’s School of Earth and Space Exploration were recently honored with renewals of the prestigious “Faculty for the Future” grant from the Schlumberger Foundation. The award provides up to three years (based on annual evaluation) of financial support for selected students pursuing doctoral degrees.

The Schlumberger Foundation has granted $6.3 million to 168 women scientists through its “Faculty for the Future” program for the 2014-2015 academic year. Now in its tenth year, this program supports women scientists from developing countries through grants to enable them to pursue doctorate and post-doctorate studies in scientific and engineering disciplines at leading universities worldwide.

Gayatri Marliyani, originally from Indonesia, and Ruirui Han, from Hubei Province (China), were among the 84 applicants to have their grants renewed.

Marliyani is pursuing a doctoral degree in geological sciences. This is her third year of funding. She focuses her research on the active faults and earthquake hazards of Java Indonesia.

Indonesia experiences a variety of geologically-related hazards, including earthquakes and tsunamis. In Java, the hazards are mostly associated with the activity of the upper plate structures as response to the tectonic subduction south of the island. For her doctorate, Marliyani evaluates observable deformation in the upper plate of Java to identify zones of rapid deformation in the area. The results should contribute to the development of seismic hazard analysis in Java, and may be useful in understanding similar subduction systems in other parts of the world.

Marliyani attained an undergraduate degree in geological engineering at Gadjah Mada University in 2005. She then earned a master’s degree in geological sciences at San Diego State University in 2011. In the fall of 2011, she arrived at ASU.

“Gayatri is a very hard worker, extremely intelligent and an excellent scientist. Her research has fundamental value in helping us understand active faulting, and it is applicable to earthquake hazard reduction,” says her adviser, professor Ramon Arrowsmith. “She is an excellent role model and a wonderful ambassador for the Faculty for the Future program.”

After completing her graduate studies at ASU, Marliyani says she plans to return to Indonesia to teach at the Geological Engineering Department, Gadjah Mada University, as well as continue her research.

Han is pursuing a doctoral degree in exploration systems design. She attained an undergraduate degree in communication engineering at Wuhan Institute of Technology in 2009, and then earned a master’s degree in electronics engineering at Tsinghua University in 2012. She arrived at ASU in fall 2012.

This is Han’s second year of funding through the Schlumberger Foundation. Her research focuses on micro-electro-mechanical systems used for earth and space exploration. She specifically looks at pH value sensors of high spacial resolution used to study geobiochemistry in harsh environments, which is very important to understanding life’s origin and evolution.

After completing her graduate studies at ASU, Han says she plans to return to her hometown of Xiangyang to teach, mentor and continue her research.

“Ruirui has demonstrated great work ethic and excellent intelligence in pursuing scientific discovery with her engineering mind. As an example of the school's goal of integrating science and engineering, she is a unique member of the Faculty for the Future program,” says her adviser, Hongyu Yu, an assistant professor in the school.

The School of Earth and Space Exploration in an academic unit in ASU's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

For more information visit www.facultyforthefuture.net.