Federico Ciardo, PhD
Tenure-track Assistant Professor & Principal Investigator
I'm a tenure-track Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Northwestern University. Before joining NU, I completed my postdoctoral research studies in Switzerland and in the USA - first at the Swiss Seismological Service (SED) at ETH Zurich, and then at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts. I earned my Ph.D. in Mechanics from École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland.
General interests: traveling, skiing, running, playing soccer and footvolley.
Ari Silver
Graudate student
Academic background: B.A. in Physics with a concentration in Geophysics from Northwestern University.
My research interests lie in the earthquake mechanics, slow slip events and numerical modeling.
General interests: I like to buy and sell second-hand clothing, play guitar, and run.
Ari Silver
Graduate student (starting on Sept. 2025)
Academic background: B. Eng. in Engineering Mechanics from Sichuan University, with a minor in Software Engineering (expected).
My research interests lie in fluid and solid mechanics and their interactions. My research will focus on induced seismicity using theoretical and numerical methods.
General interests: I enjoy cycling around the city. Although I'm not a good cook, I love experimenting with different cuisines.
Willa Cates
High schooler intern.
Academic background: I am a senior at Evanston Township High School in Evanston, Illinois. When I get to college, I plan on majoring in engineering with hopefully a dual major or minor in Statistics. My research for the Geoforce lies in numerical modeling of earthquakes ruptures.
General interests: Outside of school I enjoy running, I love to read, and play piano.
Gabi Jamieson
High-schooler intern.
Academic background: I am a senior at Northside College Prep and I am looking to major in engineering for my undergraduate education.
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Research Interests: My work for the GEOFORCE lies within numerical earthquake modeling and analysis.
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General Interests: I love to hike and swim. I also love pop music, especially Taylor Swift and Gracie Abrams.