NSF awards SUNY Poly professor grant funding for ongoing research

MARCY, N.Y. — A professor at SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) will use a grant of more than $93,000 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for ongoing research.

The award is part of a larger NSF grant committing nearly $300,000 to the project “Machine Learning on Dynamical Systems via Topological Features” that has Firas Khasawneh working with researchers at the University at Albany and Michigan State University, SUNY Poly said in a news release. 

Khasawneh, recipient of the $93,000 award, is an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at SUNY Poly’s Marcy campus.

The NSF in April also awarded Khasawneh $196,000 for a separate research project on high-level mathematics in data analysis.

Khasawneh’s research seeks to “further the understanding, analysis and usefulness of complex 21st century datasets by developing the necessary, novel mathematical and computational tools at the intersection of topological data analysis, dynamical systems, and machine learning,” according to SUNY Poly. 

The impact of the research would “enhance” methods for laser-based additive manufacturing and manufacturing of smart-drug delivery systems, as well as bioengineering, along with other applications, the school said.

“I am very grateful for winning two NSF awards in one year, and I am proud to see that the scholarship of my research group is receiving some of the highest recognition from my peers,” Khasawneh said in the release. “These two awards speak to the innovative research being done at SUNY Poly and I am looking forward to the challenging but exciting work ahead.”

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com