UC Berkeley Engineering

Watch how Berkeley research turned coffee spills into a life-saving test - Berkeley News A new technology born at UC Berkeley uses the "coffee-ring effect" to deliver rapid test results for COVID, cancer and more.

Researchers from @berkeleyengineer.bsky.social turned the “coffee-ring effect” into a rapid disease test that can detect COVID, sepsis, and even cancer markers in just minutes. news.berkeley.edu/2026/01/09/w...

Excited to read about @berkeleyengineer.bsky.social CEE PhD candidate Linda Lim, a 2025 graduate of Eno’s Leaders Development Conference (LDC), recipient of the Lillian Borrone Scholarship, featured on Eno Center for Transportation's website. Learn more about Linda: enotrans.org/article/buil...

Ashmita Kumar works outside her grandparents’ garage in San Jose. (Marcus Hanschen)

Ashmita Kumar (B.S.’25 EECS; Business), the 2024 Big Ideas Contest winner, co-founded Code Blue, a startup that uses AI to detect strokes.

She's emblematic of UC Berkeley's top ranking for producing student- and alumni-led startups!

Read her California Magazine profile: bit.ly/3LFcNbW

Using the microbiome to combat lung pathogens - Berkeley Engineering Novel approach offers a way to stop deadly infections without using antibiotics

A team of scientists led by UC Berkeley is working on a system that uses probiotics, beneficial bacteria within our bodies, and prebiotics, the nutrients that support these good bacteria, to combat lung pathogens.

Tech For Good | CNN A team of researchers is developing biodegradable seed carriers that can be deployed using drone technology.

CNN recently featured professor Lining Yao's Morphing Matter Lab on the show Tech for Good!

The researchers' work on self-burying E-seeds were highlighted as an innovation in reforestation efforts.

Researchers uncover new rules for designing protein-like polymers - Berkeley Engineering Findings could lead to eco-friendly plastics and other materials

UC Berkeley researchers have unlocked “design rules” that upend long-held views on polymers and could pave the way for eco-friendly plastics and other materials.

Berkeley Engineering’s 2025 in review - Berkeley Engineering Nine standout stories from the year

‘Tis the season for retrospective lists, and Berkeley Engineering is here to bring you the best of our research, accomplishments and community in 2025!

Brace yourself for everything from classic arcade games to swanky student hubs to Nobel prize wins.

As we head into the holidays, we wanted to express our deep gratitude for all who make up the Berkeley Engineering community!

To brighten this wish, we are featuring the Strauch Hypercube, a dynamic art installation that illuminates the Grimes Engineering Center.

Fiat Lux!

Nature provides the answers - Berkeley Engineering Phillip Messersmith harnesses the natural world to engineer medical innovations

Did you know? Mussels attach to surfaces with protein fibers called byssal threads… and this biological feature is inspiring professor Phillip Messersmith to develop cutting-edge adhesives.

Two UC Berkeley professors elected to the National Academy of Inventors - Berkeley Engineering Ana Claudia Arias and Tahir Ghani named as 2025 fellows

Ghani, visiting professor of EECS, is a senior Intel fellow and director of semiconductor research at Intel Corp. Dubbed “Mr. Transistor,” he has played a central role in the transformation of transistor technology across three decades. His career has resulted in over 900 patents.

Two UC Berkeley professors elected to the National Academy of Inventors - Berkeley Engineering Ana Claudia Arias and Tahir Ghani named as 2025 fellows

Arias, professor of EECS, centers her research on printed and flexible electronics, using these materials to fabricate bendable devices and sensors for health applications. She has developed skin-like sensors, wearable monitors, and devices that make MRI procedures easier and safer for children.

Two UC Berkeley professors elected to the National Academy of Inventors - Berkeley Engineering Ana Claudia Arias and Tahir Ghani named as 2025 fellows

Ana Claudia Arias and Tahir Ghani, both faculty members in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, have been elected to the National Academy of Inventors!

The honor, awarded to 185 inductees this year, marks the highest professional distinction awarded solely to inventors.

👏👏👏

Congrats to CEE PhD student Albert Cao, Professor Marta Gonzalez, and the HumNet Lab team for earning second-best contribution at ACM SIGSPATIAL 2025 for their work, “sparkmobility: A Spark-based Python Library for Processing, Modeling, and Analyzing Large Mobility Datasets.”

Yao holds a PneuMesh robot at the Morphing Matter Lab. (Photo by Adam Lau/UC Berkeley Engineering)

Two hands hold up a PneuMesh robot. (Photo by Adam Lau/UC Berkeley Engineering)

A hand holds up the underside of a MorphingSkin bracelet. (Photo by Adam Lau/UC Berkeley Engineering)

Yao poses with a large pine cone. (Photo by Adam Lau/UC Berkeley Engineering)

Check out these outtakes from our photo shoot in Professor Lining Yao’s Morphing Matter Lab for Berkeley Engineer magazine!

Yao, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, envisions a future where materials respond through interaction with the environment.

Read all about it: bit.ly/4nSSDbI

Game changer - Berkeley Engineering Arcade legend Eugene Jarvis looks back on his time as a Berkeley undergrad

Jarvis would go on to use his programming bona fides to create 1980’s Defender, which innovated how video games on a whole were structured. He’s also responsible for other cabinet classics such as the Cruis’n series and Robotron: 2084, among many other games!

Game changer - Berkeley Engineering Arcade legend Eugene Jarvis looks back on his time as a Berkeley undergrad

Eugene Jarvis (B.S.’76 EECS) is a certified game changer — as in, a pioneer of the arcade gaming space!

His storied career got its start in Birge Hall, next to the Campanile. It was in the basement where he got his first taste of video games, specifically 1962’s Spacewar!

Seva seated in a hockey uniform. (Courtesy)

Seva works on a prosthetic leg. (Courtesy)

Seva next to a prosthetic leg on skis. (Courtesy)

"Engineering is more than design. It is a way to heal, to help and to make a difference. My goal is to use technology to fill what is missing, restore what is broken and create tools that help hearts and lives feel whole again.” — Nikolai Seva (MEng’25 ME) on his adaptive ski prosthetic #VoicesOfBE

The Best Inventions of 2025 Here are the 2025 best inventions making the world better, smarter, and more fun.

The surgical technique is called “irreversible electroporation” (IRE), which destroys cell walls without harming nearby tissue vessels.

"I truly think that this will be viewed as one of the most important advances in the treatment of tumors in years,” Rubinsky told Berkeley News back in 2007.

Text: “Boris Rubinsky is behind one of TIME’s Best Inventions of 2025!” An illustration of needles delivering an electric pulse. (Courtesy NanoKnife AngioDynamics)

Did you know? Boris Rubinsky, professor emeritus of bioengineering and of mechanical engineering, is behind one of TIME’s Best Inventions of 2025!

The NanoKnife is revolutionizing care for prostate cancer by using electric currents to quickly and easily reach remote tumors.

My story on Lining Yao and the Morphing Matter Lab was recently published by @berkeleyengineer.bsky.social in Berkeley Engineer magazine.

Chancellor Rich Lyons is seated in a Formula Electric racing car during open house at Richmond Field Station. (Photo by Adam Lau/Berkeley Engineering)

Chancellor Lyons tours STAR's booth displaying rockets and machine parts. (Photo by Adam Lau/Berkeley Engineering)

Students in blue hard hats observe the machinery at the SOAR labs. (Photo by Adam Lau/Berkeley Engineering)

Three students observe the machinery at the SOAR labs. (Photo by Adam Lau/Berkeley Engineering)

ICYMI: We launched the Student Organization Applied Research (SOAR) labs at Richmond Field Station (RFS) on Saturday!

Now, student orgs can design, build and develop projects using high-end technology and equipment that improves both efficiency and safety.

Read our story: bit.ly/3XxlPKr

We’re SOARin’, flyin’ ✈️

At the Student Organization Applied Research (SOAR) labs, that is! Today marks the launch of this new hub for creativity, hands-on learning and teamwork at Richmond Field Station.

Here’s to kicking off a new era of student innovation!

Testing the waters - Berkeley Engineering Researchers have found that stored drinking water is a key transmission pathway for E. coli

From the latest issue of Berkeley Engineering mag: Research by QB3-Berkeley affiliate Amy Pickering shows that stored drinking water is a major source of E. coli transmission in developing countries. Read more from @berkeleyengineer.bsky.social: engineering.berkeley.edu/news/2025/11...

Berkeley Engineer cover featuring Lining Yao, who holds a 4D printed object that folds itself into a flower shape when heated. (Photo by Adam Lau / Berkeley Engineering)

The new issue of Berkeley Engineer magazine is out now!

Our cover story highlights how science meets shapeshifting at the Morphing Matter Lab. Other features cover medical innovations, an at-home diagnostic test and a new color "olo."

Read the issue: engineering.berkeley.edu/magazine

Mark your calendars to celebrate a new class of graduating Bears! Winter (Commencement) is coming, December 20, 2025!

#UCBerkeley #CalGrad #Commencement

How a major Bay Area earthquake could endanger healthcare access - Berkeley Engineering Study shows that damage to hospitals and transportation networks could compound failures across the region

Their findings revealed life-threatening disruptions that could potentially be mitigated through a combination of more resilient healthcare and transportation infrastructure.

How a major Bay Area earthquake could endanger healthcare access - Berkeley Engineering Study shows that damage to hospitals and transportation networks could compound failures across the region

As reported in Nature Communications, researchers led by Luis Ceferino, assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering, simulated a major earthquake in the San Francisco Bay Area, then studied its impact on access to acute care hospitals.

How a major Bay Area earthquake could endanger healthcare access - Berkeley Engineering Study shows that damage to hospitals and transportation networks could compound failures across the region

No one knows when the next major earthquake will strike. In the meantime, researchers are working to understand how these events could disrupt access to healthcare in densely populated regions — and how best to prepare for them.

Heart-on-a-chip may lead to new treatments for heart failure - Berkeley Engineering Model helps identify nanoparticles that can deliver mRNA directly into heart muscle cells

“By using organ-on-a-chip models to predict heart-targeted delivery and safety,” Healy said, “we can potentially accelerate programs for heart failure therapeutics, cardioprotective factors and gene correction, while reducing time and cost to translation.”

Read our story: bit.ly/4qEeK87