The Swarm

Anastasia Bizyaeva is an assistant professor in the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Cornell University. Her research explores mathematical connections between collectively intelligent behavior in biological and social systems, and the design of autonomous and artificially intelligent behaviors in engineered teams. Prior to joining Cornell she was a Postdoctoral Scholar with the AI Institute in Dynamic Systems at the University of Washington. She received her Ph.D. in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering from Princeton University in 2022, and her B.A. in physics with a minor in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley in 2016. At Cornell, she is a member of the Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, and Applied Mathematics graduate fields.

Email: anastasiab [at] cornell [dot] edu

Office: 321 Upson Hall

Links: personal website, LinkedIn profile, Cornell faculty page 

Hello! I’m a first year Ph.D. student at the Cornell Center for Applied Mathematics. I am interested in collective behavior, especially in biological systems. I love bringing all sorts of powerful mathematical tools to bear to investigate complex systems. Before coming to Cornell, I earned a B.S. in Physics and Mathematics from Michigan State University. I’m also highly motivated by Math, Physics, and Computing education, communication, and outreach. I was part of MSU’s Physics Education Research Lab for nearly all of my undergraduate career.

Email: av589 [at] cornell [dot] edu 

Office: 657 Frank H.T. Rhodes Hall

Links: personal website

I am a Ph.D. student in Mechanical Engineering at Cornell University. I am broadly interested in robotics, control theory, collective behavior and its application to swarms. I obtained my Bachelor's degree in Automation from Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU) in 2024. 

Email: cw996 [at] cornell [dot] edu

Office: 402 Upson Hall

I am a graduate student from Cornell's Center for Applied Mathematics 2024 cohort. My current research interest is in dynamical systems and collaborating with other fields by using tools from mathematical analysis. My research work outside of math includes chemical and biomolecular engineering, and biology. Before arriving at Cornell, I received my B.A. in Mathematics and Physics from the University of Pennsylvania.

Email: htn33 [at] cornell [dot] edu

Office: 657 Frank H.T. Rhodes Hall

Hi! I am a CS Ph.D. student at Cornell, currently working on reservoir computing (RC) at the intersection of control theory. I am particularly interested in how RC models can be used for real-time decision-making and control in robotics. I hold a B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Physics from the Technion, and have previously explored formal methods for robotics. I am excited about learning new things and developing a deeper understanding of RC, dynamical systems, control, and their applications. I also currently serve as the co-president of the Cornell Robotics Graduate Students Organization (RGSO). Feel free to reach out!

Email: nk675 [at] cornell [dot] edu

Links: LinkedIn profile  

Hello! I am a Masters student in the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Cornell University. I am particularly interested in the analytical and data-driven modeling of dynamical systems, as well as their analysis and control based on the resulting models. During my undergraduate career, I worked on the hybrid dynamics modeling and numerical simulations of legged and aquatic robots.

Email: zc548 [at] cornell [dot] edu 

Office: Upson 325

Hi there! I’m a final-year undergraduate student at IIT Bombay, majoring in Mechanical Engineering with minors in Systems and Control Engineering and Robotics. In summer 2025 I was a research scholar interning at the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Cornell University, where my work focused on nonlinear dynamics, particularly bifurcation analysis. Other academic interests of mine include optimal control, geometry, and robotics. Outside of academics, I enjoy pencil sketching, video games, music, and working on mobile robotics projects, having previously served as a controls engineer with IIT Bombay’s premier autonomous aerial robotics team.

Email: pg528 [at] cornell [dot] edu

Links: LinkedIn profile

Howdy! I'm a second-year Ph.D. student in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Washington, working with Professors Steve Brunton and Nathan Kutz in the Data-Driven Dynamics and Controls group. My research involves collaborating with Professor Bizyaeva to better understand reservoir computing as a tool for time series prediction and applying it to problems in control and fluid dynamics. More broadly, I am interested in developing methods to impose hard physical constraints on neural network predictions and leveraging active learning to apply control to systems with unknown or partially known dynamics. Before starting graduate school, I earned my B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Georgia Tech in 2023, during which I also completed internships at SpaceX, Raytheon, and Los Alamos National Laboratory. 

Email: dtretiak [at] uw [dot] edu

Links: LinkedIn profile 

I am a third-year Ph.D. student in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Princeton University, co-advised by Professors Naomi Leonard and Simon Levin. My research utilizes tools from dynamical systems on networks and bifurcation analysis to understand how individual decision-making and information transmission influence the spread of epidemics and other contagion phenomena in networks of populations. Before arriving at Princeton, I earned a B.S. and M.S. in Mathematics from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).

Email: m.ordorica [at] princeton [dot] edu

Links: LinkedIn profile