For information about joining the lab group see this page.
Mara Freilich
Mara is an assistant professor in the Division of Applied Mathematics and Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at Brown University. She earned her PhD in Physical Oceanography in the MIT-Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Joint Program in 2021. She has a BSc in Applied Math from Brown University.
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Postdocs
Shailja Gangrade
Shailja ("Shell-ja") is a biological oceanographer specializing in biophysical interactions and plankton ecology. Her postdoctoral research examines the distribution and composition of phytoplankton and bacterial communities observed within (sub)mesoscale circulations. Shailja received her PhD in 2024 from Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Outside of research, Shailja has a passion for teaching & community outreach, cooking new recipes, and handbuilding pottery.
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Arianna Krinos Quinn
Arianna Krinos Quinn is a microbiologist, a computational scientist, an educator, and a postdoctoral researcher at Brown with the Center for Chemical Currencies of a Microbial Planet. She received her PhD from the MIT-WHOI Joint Program in Oceanography and Applied Ocean Science and Engineering in 2024.
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Graduate students and post-bac researchers
Emily Hu
Emily is a C-CoMP Bridge-to-PhD Fellow in the 2024-2026 cohort. She received her BA in Chemistry from Rutgers University. Her work focuses on the interaction between biogeochemical processes in ocean microbial ecosystems and submesoscale (physical) processes. Outside of research, she enjoys reading short stories, playing mahjong with friends, and spending time with animals.
Alejandra Lopez
Alejandra G. Lopez is a Ph.D. student in Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at Brown University. Her research centers on the Salton Sea, integrating remote sensing, air and water quality analysis, and community science to examine the region’s evolving environmental challenges. Originally from the Eastern Coachella Valley, she approaches her work with a perspective shaped by both personal connection and a commitment to environmental justice. Prior to beginning her doctoral studies, Alejandra worked as an Associate Consultant on Esri’s Natural Resources team, where she supported geospatial solutions for environmental management. She holds an M.S. in Geographic Information Science and Technology from the University of Southern California and a B.A. in International Development and Geography from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Katarina Merk
Katarina is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Planetary Sciences at Brown University. She has a B.S. in Applied Mathematics from the University of California, Davis. Her research currently focuses on how eddies influence carbon flux and microbial communities.
Erin Okey
Erin is a PhD student in the Division of Applied Mathematics at Brown University. Prior to starting at Brown, she completed a BSc in mathematics at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada. She is currently studying how ecological dynamics impact the global ocean carbon cycle. In her free time, she enjoys tennis and jiu-jitsu.
Lulabel Ruiz Seitz
Lulabel is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Applied Mathematics at Brown University. Before that, she earned a B.S. Honors in Mathematics at Stanford University. She studies geophysical fluid dynamics using multiscale asymptotics and is particularly interested in combining this with variations of the Eulerian-Lagrangian mapping, to gain new insights into wave-mean flow interactions.
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Undergraduate students
Ashely Aguayo
Ashely is an undergraduate student at College of the Desert studying biology. During her time here at Brown, she studied the biology of the Salton Sea, including chlorophyll, nutrients, and phytoplankton. In her free time, she likes reading books, collecting seashells, learning about new things, and going to beaches.
Cassidy Charles
Cassidy is a rising 4th-year undergraduate student at Brown University, concentrating in Applied Mathematics and Geology-Biology. She is currently working on a senior thesis related to plankton blooms. Outside of research, she enjoys cooking and spending time outdoors.
Wyatt Sieminski
Wyatt is a 4th year undergraduate at Brown University, concentrating in Geophysics and Climate Physics, and Computer Science. He is currently working on a senior thesis using MITgcm to compare temperature and salinity front interactions with the atmosphere, and is generally interested in problems related to climate modeling. Outside of research, he enjoys hiking and whitewater.
Kathy Sun
Kathy is a sophomore at Brown University studying Applied Mathematics and Biology. She is currently integrating salinity factors into a proteome allocation model to quantify phytoplankton physiological responses under environmental stress. When she isn’t in the lab, she can be found tucked away with a good book, lost in a watercolor painting, or brainstorming social impact tech applications.
Ethan Tindel
Ethan is a junior at Brown University studying Applied Mathematics. He is currently studying abroad in Copenhagen, but last semester he worked on a research project modeling phytoplankton and nutrient concentrations. In his free time, he loves watching baseball, going to the gym, and playing chess and poker.
Collaborating students
Anna Lo Piccolo
Anna is a PhD candidate in physical oceanography. She studies submesoscale processes in the upper ocean, their role in the ocean biogeochemistry, and how they are represented in global ocean models. She is also interested in polar regions and sea ice-ocean interactions. She likes hiking, reading, and doing creative work.
Alumni
Postdocs
Lilian Dove, NOAA Climate and Global Change Fellow 2023-2025, Next position: Assistant Professor, Georgia Tech
PhD students
Élise Beaudin, Brown '25, Next position: Ocean Networks Canada
Undergraduates
Remy Dufresne, Brown '27 UTRA 2025
Evan Li, Brown '28 UTRA 2025
Anjali Shah, Brown '25 senior thesis student 2024-2025, Next position: Alaska Fellows
Ayushman Choudhury, Brown '25 senior thesis student 2024-2025, Next position: University of Chicago PhD student
Tommy Frank, Brown '25 UTRA 2024
Maggie Gonzalez, Loyola University Chicago '26 Leadership Alliance REU 2024
Researchers
Diego Centeno, research assistant 2023-2024, Next position: UCLA PhD student