Faculty
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Dr. Zhenlong Li is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography at the Pennsylvania State University. His primary research focuses on geospatial big data analytics, spatial computing, and GeoAI with applications to disaster management, human mobility, public health, and climate change.
ResearchGate Google Scholar Curriculum Vitae Departmental Profile |
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Dr. Manzhu Yu is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography at Penn State. Dr. Yu’s research focuses on spatiotemporal theories and applications, atmospheric modeling, environmental analytics, big data and cloud computing, and the ability of using the above to solve pressing issues in natural hazards and sustainability.
ResearchGate Google Scholar Curriculum Vitae Departmental Profile |
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Dr. Louisa M Holmes is an Assistant Professor of Geography and Demography. She has a comprehensive research background, including formal training in substance use behavior and prevention, public health, geography, and demography, with expertise in geospatial, quantitative, and mixed methods. Her research focuses in three areas – (1) substance use behavior and policy; (2) health inequity and the social and geographic determinants of health; and (3) innovative quantitative, geospatial, and mixed research methods applied to health behavior and policy. |
Graduate Students
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Huan Ning joined GIBD as a master student in 2017 and graduated in May 2019. He rejoined GIDB to pursue his Ph.D. in Spring 2021 after a stay at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. Huan’s recent studies are related to place & health, spatial computing, street view image, human mobility, and deep learning. Curriculum Vitae |
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Mohammad Naser Lessani joined GIBD as a PhD student in Fall 2022. Naser Lessani holds a M.S. degree in Surveying and Mapping at Central South University, Changsha, China, and a B.A. in Geodesy Engineering from Kabul Polytechnic University, Kabul, Afghanistan. His research interests include spatial data analysis, information visualization, and parallel computing. |
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Temitope Ezekiel Akinboyewa is a PhD student at the Department of Geography, Penn State. Temitope holds a masters and bachelor degree in Surveying and Geoinformatics at the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria. His research interests are centered around GIScience, remote sensing, machine learning, and geospatial big data analytics. |
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Samrin Sauda is a PhD student in the Department of Geography at Penn State. She holds an M.S. degree in Geography from Virginia Tech and a B.S. degree in Geography and Environment from the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Her research interest includes GIScience, remote sensing, and machine learning, applied to natural hazards and extreme weather phenomena. |
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Shiyan Zhang acquired an M.A. degree in Geography from George Washington University, Washington DC, and a B.S. in Geographic Information Science from Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture (BUCEA), Beijing, China. Her current research efforts focus on using statistical methods and cutting-edge machine learning and deep learning algorithms to analyze and improve the accuracy of PM2.5 concentration predictions, both for daily environmental conditions and wildfire events. |
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Diena Al Dogom is currently working towards a Doctor of Engineering degree at the Engineering College-Penn State University. She holds a master’s degree in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) from Penn State University and a B.Sc. in Surveying and Geomatics Engineering from BAU, Jordan. She is currently employed as the Head of the Data Analytics Group at MBRSC Lab-Dubai. Her research interests include spatial and statistical analysis, GIS and remote sensing for hazard mapping, environmental modelling, and urban growth. |
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Bibian Robert is a part-time master’s Student in Spatial data science at Penn State. She currently works in health research as a GIS Assistant Research Officer. Bibian holds a bachelor’s degree in Geospatial Engineering from the University of Nairobi, Kenya. Her research interests are centered around GISscience, spatial statistics, remote sensing, machine learning, big data analytics, spatial epidemiology, and climate change. Linkedin |
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Shaowei Ying joined GIBD as a part-time Masters in Data Science student in Jan 2024. When not studying, he works for NCS Pte Ltd, a Technology Services company headquartered in Singapore. Previously, he founded DataSpark, a start-up building geo-spatial data products using telco network signals for outdoor advertising, transport management and public safety. His current interests are centered around generative AI applications. |
First lab meeting in Spring 2024
