The Robert Mehrabian College of Engineering

👁️What if AI could help restore vision?

Researchers from UC Santa Barbara and collaborating institutions have shown that artificial intelligence can make future visual prostheses, like a bionic eye, more precise, personalized and responsive to each individual.

By using deep-learning models to tailor patterns of brain stimulation, the team improved how a blind participant's visual cortex responded, marking an exciting step toward adaptive devices that could one day help restore functional vision.

UC Santa Barbara has been selected to lead a new National Science Foundation cloud laboratory that could transform how materials research is done. Supported by a $20 million NSF award, the new COAST PCL will allow researchers to design experiments remotely while robotics, automation, and AI carry them out.

From stronger composites to more durable medical polymers, the facility will help scientists test new materials faster while expanding access to advanced research tools for researchers across the country.

Click here to read more: https://engineering.ucsb.edu/news/COAST-PCL-NSF

🏁 From pushing their race car through inspections… to racing it on the Michigan International Speedway, Gaucho Racing | UC Santa Barbara Formula SAE
has come a long way! Read their story: https://engineering.ucsb.edu/news/gaucho-racing-accelerates-to-a-breakthrough-finish (link in bio)

After years of perseverance, late nights, and relentless problem-solving, Gaucho Racing achieved its best finish ever at the Formula SAE Electric Competition! ⚡🏎️

Competing against 88 teams from around the world, UCSB's student-led Formula SAE team passed every mechanical, electrical, and safety inspection—an accomplishment achieved by only about 40% of qualifying teams—before finishing 30th overall, the highest ranking in the club's history.

Their journey proves that engineering isn't just about building faster cars—it's about resilience, teamwork, and turning setbacks into breakthroughs.

Congratulations to every student who helped make this milestone possible. The future is moving fast, and Gaucho Racing is just getting started.



Captions:
Pic 1 Gaucho Racing's car performs a test run at UCSB and races away on the Michigan International Speedway.
Pic 2 Suspension members make last minute adjustments to the brake system.
Pic 3 Chassis lead Ava Tran welding the chassis she designed.
Pic 4 Electrical team members going through battery inspection at Formula SAE Electric 2026(L to R: Owen Liu, Ryan Nguyen, Casey Zwicker)
Pic 5 Aerodynamics lead and driver Forrest a
Drury performing the tilt test at Formula SAE Electric 2026.
Pic 6 Rain test at the Formula SAE Electric Competition 2026
Pic 7 Suspension lead Curtis Butsko posing with all the tech passing stickers.
Pic 8 Gaucho Racing president Alex Fu celebrates along with the team after passing mechanical inspection.
Pic 9 FSAE cars from the UC Campus in attendance (L to R) UCLA, UC Irvine, UC Santa Cruz, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara Credit: UCSC Formula Slug (UC Berkley and UC Davis were present at the Competition, but not in this picture).
Pic 10 GR26 driving during the auto cross event.

Professor Michelle O'Malley has received Phase I support through the U.S. Department of Energy's inaugural Genesis Mission, a national initiative designed to accelerate scientific discovery with artificial intelligence.

Her team will study anaerobic microbes, organisms that live without oxygen, to learn how to direct them to convert plant waste into medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs), chemical building blocks used to make products including fuels, bioplastics, medicines, and advanced materials. Producing MCFAs from plant waste could offer a more sustainable alternative to natural sources.

The project brings together researchers from UC Santa Barbara, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, UC Berkeley, and Cerebras Systems, combining ExFAB's distinctive experimental capabilities with expertise in machine learning, genome modeling, and genetic engineering.

Read more: https://engineering.ucsb.edu/news/2026-Genesis-DOE-Projects

How can bioengineering help us better understand and protect the world around us?

Yonatan Chemla, who will join UC Santa Barbara's Department of Bioengineering in March 2027, is developing new ways to combine mRNA biology, synthetic biology, machine learning, and hyperspectral imaging to study living systems beyond the lab.

His research could enable scientists to detect pollution, monitor ecosystem health, and engineer biological systems that safely address real-world environmental and human health challenges.

Click here to learn more: https://engineering.ucsb.edu/news/yonatan-chemla-new-faculty

✨ What happens when science and art collide?

The result is  of  — stunning images that transform scientific research into visual masterpieces.

For Assistant Professor Marley Dewey, in the Department of at UCSB, creating Art of Science images is a way to reveal the extraordinary beauty hidden within scientific discovery. Using microscope images, experimental data, and research visualizations, she highlights the intricate patterns, vibrant colors, and remarkable structures that exist at scales invisible to the naked eye.

These images do more than capture attention — they tell the story of discovery, spark curiosity, and remind us that is at the heart of innovation.

Where science inspires art, and art inspires wonder. 

Images:

1. Mineralized collagen-PLA composite (Finalist for the Graduate Image of Research Contest, UIUC). Mineralized collagen scaffolds are soft, porous materials used for bone repair, but are mechanically weak. To better match the mechanical properties of bone, a polylactic acid (PLA) 3D-print was embedded within collagen to create a stiffer composite material while still allowing for cell infiltration. This is an Scanning Electron Microscopy image demonstrating the 3D-print (blue) within the collagen (orange).

2. Hyperelastic Bone 3D print (Society for Biomaterials ECTM SIG Sci-Art Image Competition Winner). This is a false-colored scanning electron microscopy image of a 3D-print fabricated by Dimension Inx LLC (Chicago, IL) for bone repair applications. The mineral (orange) and unique polymer chemistry (purple) allow for a flexible material which promotes bone formation.

3. Mineralized collagen scaffold showing mineral crystals and collagen fibers- Image Featured on National Science Foundation Multimedia Gallery Scanning electron microscopy image of a mineralized collagen scaffold showing mineral crystals and collagen fibers. 

4. Hyperelastic Bone Galaxy (Beckman Institute Graduate Student Image of Research Contest Winner, UIUC). This is a false-colored Scanning electron microscopy image of a 3D-print fabricated by Dimension Inx LLC (Chicago, IL).

Strong industry partnerships create stronger opportunities for our students.

Through UC Santa Barbara's Corporate Affiliates Program (CAP), engineering students connect with leading companies through internships, capstone projects, networking events, research collaborations, and career opportunities that extend well beyond graduation.

Partners like Northrop Grumman, Teledyne FLIR, Lockheed Martin, and HRL Laboratories say UCSB graduates stand out not only for their technical expertise, but also for their communication skills, collaborative mindset, and ability to contribute from day one.

Click here to read more about how CAP is helping shape the next generation of engineering leaders: https://engineering.ucsb.edu/news/CAP

CNN recently featured UC Santa Barbara professor Shuji Nakamura, who earned the 2014 Nobel Prize in Physics for his breakthrough invention of blue LEDs. Now, he says his next endeavor, creating an "endless" supply of clean energy through nuclear fusion, could be even more transformative.

Click here to read the full story: https://www.cnn.com/science/shuji-nakamura-lit-up-the-world-and-now-wants-to-power-it-spc