Melissa Ruszczyk, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Researcher, Department of Physics
Melissa Ruszczyk is a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Miami. Her research focuses on how the physical environment affects organisms’ behaviors, morphologies, and ecologies – particularly in low and intermediate Reynolds number environments. Her work with X-REEFS investigates how local alkalinity enhancements in substrates interact with surface hydrodynamics to aid coral growth. Additional research projects include understanding the pre-settlement dynamics of coral larvae dynamics and the biophysics of coral spawning. Melissa also collaborates with musicians at the University of Miami to compose pieces based on her data to raise awareness of the importance and contribution of plankton to a healthy ecosystem.
Melissa received her B.S. in Biology and Music from Allegheny College (Meadville, PA) in 2017 and her Ph.D. in Ocean Science and Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology (Atlanta, GA) in 2022. She worked as a postdoc in Dr. Donald R. Webster’s lab at Georgia Tech studying phytoplankton interactions with microscale turbulence before joining Dr. Vivek N.
Prakash’s lab at the University of Miami as a postdoctoral researcher in 2022.
Melissa Ruszczyk Ph.D. Curriculum Vitae
