Sonya Smith | Howard Profiles

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Faculty

Sonya T. Smith, Ph.D. (she/her)

Executive Director, Research Institute on Tactical Autonomy (RITA), University Affiliated Research Center (UARC)

ssmith@Howard.edu

Department/Office

Office of Research

School/College

College of Engineering and Architecture (CEA)
Graduate School

Additional Positions

Professor & Director, Atmospheric Sciences Program

Department of Mechanical Engineering, CEA

Biography

Sonya T. Smith, Ph.D., is the executive director of the Research Institute on Tactical Autonomy, University Affiliated Research Center. She joined the Howard University faculty in 1995 and is the first tenured female faculty member in the Department of Mechanical Engineering. Smith obtained her Ph.D. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from The University of Virginia (UVA) in 1995 and was also the first African-American woman to do so. In 2010 she became the first woman promoted to the highest academic rank of Professor (full) in this department and the following year 2011 became the first women appointed as Mechanical Engineering Department Chair at Howard University.

Smith has established an interdisciplinary theoretical and computational research laboratory entitled the Applied Fluids-Thermal Research Laboratory (@FTERLab). She has received support for her research from NSF, NIH, NASA, DOD and industry. In 2010 she was named an ORISE Fellow at the National Institute on Deafness and other Communication Disorders (NIDCD). Her memberships in professional societies include the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the Association for Research in Otolaryngology (ARO), the American Society of Engineering Education (ASEE), the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), and the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE).

Smith is Principal Investigator for the Howard University ADVANCE-IT (HU ADVANCE- IT) award. HU ADVANCE-IT is committed to solving the institutional and national problem of Advancement and Leadership of Women in STEM. This award, funded by the National Science Foundation will enable Howard University to develop an innovative and strategic model for institutional transformation that increases the number of female leaders in the STEM disciplines.

Her work for women’s leadership in STEM is both a national and international initiative. Smith works with the South Africa Department of Science and Technology (DST) on several initiatives that include the Gender Summit 5 held in April 2015. She also organized the DST/HU ADVANCE-IT Women in STEM Conference held in Johannesburg, Republic of South Africa in October 2015. A second conference will be held in 2017.

Smith’s personal goal is to be a mentor and resource to all students and young faculty/ professionals, but especially to those underrepresented in STEM.

Education

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
University of Virginia
1995

Master of Science (M.S.)

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
University of Virginia
1991

Bachelor of Science (B.S.)

Mathematics
Valdosta State University
1986

Accomplishments

Fellow, American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)

Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Associate Fellow. American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA)

Fellow, Sigma Xi: The Scientific Research Honor Society

Featured News

Read: Aerospace America | Meet the New AIAA Diversity Working Group Chair, Sonya Smith

Read: University of Virginia | The Esteemed Professor Sonya T. Smith, Trailblazer and University of Virginia School of Engineering Alumna

Read: Air force Material Command | AFRL chief scientists welcome HBCU partners to advance tactical autonomy

Publications and Presentations

A Computational Model of Vestibular Fluid Response to Human Body Rotation

A computational model was developed to study the response of vestibular fluid to body motions, relating eye movement to vestibular displacement. The response in the semicircular canals (SCCs) and otolith organs were approximated as a torsional pendulum and a forced wave equation, respectively. The results of the math model were found to be consistent with results found in previous models. The results of the model will also be compared to those found experimentally using VALUS, a rotational platform updated to be used for vestibular testing.

Role of Particle Size to Channel Thickness Ratio on Performance of Nanofluids in Micro-Channels

Experimental and numerical investigations were conducted to explore the viability of single-phase nanofluids for microchannel cooling. The experiments were conducted with water/ethylene glycol-based nanofluids to investigate the thermal conductivity enhancement.

Reducing Large Viking I based Martian Entry

Reducing Large Viking I based Martian Entry, Descent and Landing Response Surface Methodology Produced Quadratic Models

In support of MARR-M, 37 statistically sound regressions models representing the entry, descent and landing (EDL) process as a test case was developed using RSM. Each model involved 152 variables and variable combinations. A 95% confidence interval of the output data from each model was compared to the 95% confidence intervals of the Mars Viking I based Entry, Descent and Landing (EDL) process.

Hybrid-MCX-1, BWB and 777 Aircraft Comparison

This research paper seeks to push the envelope of innovation with a brand new perspective on how we view air travel — redefining the Why, What and How. It explores novel concepts such as Boeing Blended Wing Body (BWB) aircraft shown in, which does not follow the conventional Tube and Wing (TAW) configuration.

Simulation of the Response of the Inner Hair Cell Stereocilia Bundle to an Acoustical Stimulus

Here we show using our microfluidics model how each row of stereocilia and their associated tip links and gates move in response to an acoustical input that induces an orbital motion of the reticular lamina. The model confirms the crucial role of the positioning of the tectorial membrane in hearing, and explains how this membrane amplifies and synchronizes the timing of peak tension in the tip links.