2019.01 - 2023.08, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania
2017.01 - 2018.12, M.S.Eng., University of Pennsylvania
2013.09 - 2017.06, B.Eng. (Hons.), Shanghai Jiao Tong University
My research focuses on applying fluid mechanics to understand the flow in natural environments and the associated physical, chemical, and biological processes, in order to predict, mitigate, and manage environmental issues. This interdisciplinary field is known as environmental fluid mechanics. At SJTU, I am working on: 1) understanding the roles of ocean currents in the growth and spatial distribution of marine plankton, and 2) developing models of ice rheology for modeling ice sheets and ice shelves.
2026.06 - Present, Tenure-track Associate Professor, Shanghai Jiao Tong University
2023.09 - 2026.05, Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Emory University
2026 - 2029, Lagrangian Ocean Transport Dynamics, NSFC Excellent Young Scientists Fund Program (Overseas)
For detailed publications, please refer to: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=oQ-8KP0AAAAJ
Selected Publications:
[1] R. Ran, et al., "Electrostatics facilitate mid-air host attachment in parasitic jumping nematodes", Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A., 122, e2503555122 (2025).
[2] R. Ran, et al., "Bacteria hinder large-scale transport and enhance small-scale mixing in time-periodic flows", Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 118, e2108548118 (2021).
[3] R. Ran & P. E. Arratia, "Enhancing transport barriers with swimming microorganisms in chaotic flows", J. Fluid Mech. 988, A25 (2024).
[4] R. Ran, et al., "Understanding the rheology of kaolinite clay suspensions using Bayesian inference", J. Rheol. 67, 241-252 (2023).
[5] R. Ran, et al., "Mixing in chaotic flows with swimming bacteria", Phys. Rev. Fluids 7, 110511 (2022).
Viscous Fluid Mechanics (Undergraduate-level Course)
Reviewers for Journal of Fluid Mechanics, Physics of Fluids, and Physical Review Fluids.
2024, Tarbutton Postdoctoral Fellowship, Emory College of Arts and Sciences
2021, Gallery of Fluid Motion Award, American Physical Society
