Director

Faculty

Andy is a Research Scientist in the Department of Aeronautics & Astronautics and also the Man Vehicle Laboratory. His current research interests are in the intersection of human-machine and human-automation interaction, human spaceflight, spatial cognition, and fatigue. His current projects are sponsored by the National Space Biomedical Research Institute, Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and Federal Rail Administration. In 1993, he helped establish Cambridge Basic Research, a basic science research laboratory for the Nissan Motor Company, and was on the research staff developing models of human driver behavior for smart cars. He moved to MIT in 1999. He received a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from The Johns Hopkins University and a Ph.D. in Bioengineering from the University of California, Berkeley.

Post Doctorate Associates

Jamie's current research explores human interaction with automated systems both during long missions with low task loading, and in single pilot-multiple unmanned aerial vehicle control settings. He is modeling complacency and boredom in autonomous vehicle system operators, and studying methods to mitigate negative effects on performance in these domains. Other projects include modeling and designing decision support systems for insertion and extraction missions with multiple unmanned rotorcraft.

Jamie received a Ph.D. in Computer Science from UCLA in 2010, where he studied medical monitoring systems and developed "medical econometrics" models for human physiological processes. He also holds a B.S. in Math-Physics from Brown University and a M.S. in Physics from Stanford University.

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Erin is a postdoctoral fellow, supported by a Computing Innovation Fellowship from the National Science Foundation and Computing Research Association. Her main research area is human-computer interaction, specifically next-generation interaction techniques. Her Ph.D. research investigated the use of non-invasive brain sensor data as an implicit, supplemental input stream to interactive systems. She is particularly interested in supporting users dealing with multitasking, interruptions and information overload, as well as understanding users working with autonomous systems.

She received her bachelor’s degree in computer science from Harvard University, and spent several years as a software engineer before completing her M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in computer science at Tufts University.

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Doctoral Students

Fei is a PhD student in the Engineering Systems Division at MIT. Fei received her Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering in 2008 and Master’s in Human Factors in 2010 from Tsinghua University in China. She is working on the Human/Automated Planner Interaction for NCW project in the Humans and Automation Lab.

Outside of her studies, Fei enjoys travelling, swimming, Chinese history and wants to learn sailing in MIT.

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Jason finished his Master's degree in Aeronautics and Astronautics in Course 16 and is now a PhD Candidate in the Engineering Systems Division. Jason's research focuses on the construction of agent-based simulation models for testing the effectiveness UAV system integration in collaborative human environments like the National Airspace System, mining environments, or aircraft carrier flight decks. His prior work was on the development of situation awareness and planning displays for scheduling and logistics operations (specifically, for aircraft carrier flight deck operations). Jason's other academic interests include the human factors issues of unmanned vehicles, integration of unmanned vehicles in practice, and unmanned systems safety.

When he's not in the lab, you can expect to find him enjoying sports, music, history, and cooking

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Alex is a doctoral degree candidate in MIT’s department of Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering. Alex received his SM in Humans in Aerospace from MIT in 2011 and his Bachelor’s in Biological Engineering from the University of Florida in 2007. His research focuses on the application of Hidden Markov Models (HMMs) to monitoring trainees’ behavior during instruction. He has experience in human factors, particularly display design and evaluation.

Outside of his studies, Alex enjoys squash and tennis, as well as supporting the departmental student groups.

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Masters Students

Mark is a master’s student exploring the transition from low to high mental workload in primarily low-task environments. He is working with the missile defense group at Lincoln Lab to more effectively incorporate a human into the missile defense system.

Mark graduated with a BS in Aeronautical Engineering from the US Air Force Academy in 2012 and will be attending pilot training after his time at MIT. He enjoys playing golf with the club team and other sports around campus.

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Radhika is an M.Eng student in Computer Science. She completed her Bachelor's from MIT in Computer Science and Math. Radhika's work at HAL focuses on aircraft production systems. Her graduate coursework is mostly related to applied AI and machine learning. In general, she's interested in all applied CS problems across different domains.

Outside of school, Radhika enjoys playing and watching sports, learning new skills, traveling, and watching movies (especially Indian movies) and plays. She loves to learn new things and is very interested in technology in developing countries.

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Pallavi completed her Bachelor's degree at MIT in 2012 and is now a candidate for Master of Engineering with the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. As a graduate student, her studies are focused in graphics and human-computer interfaces. She is currently working in conjunction with MIT CSAIL on a divert and alert project for the Massachusetts State Police.

Aside from academics, Pallavi enjoys travel, playing soccer, and Indian classical dance.

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Paul is a master's candidate in the MIT Dept. of EECS, concentrating in computer system engineering. He received his bachelor's from MIT in 2012 in computer science. Paul's research with HAL includes developing infrastructure and user interfaces for human supervisory control of micro aerial vehicles. His master's work involves analyzing and visualizing ground-penetrating radar data for operator decision support tools.

Paul also pursues studies in philosophy and enjoys vocal performance and technical theater as an officer of the MIT Gilbert and Sullivan Players.

Kathleen is a fellow in MIT’s System Design and Management Program where she is pursuing a master’s degree in engineering and management. Kathleen received her Bachelor's degree from MIT in 2007 in Aerospace Engineering with Information Technology. She has worked 5 years in the defense industry as a Systems Engineer of Intelligence, Surveillance & Reconnaissance Systems. In the lab, Kathleen is working on the development and evaluation of high speed rail scheduling and HUD displays.

Outside of academics, Kathleen serves in the US Air Force Reserves and enjoys yoga.

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Undergraduate Students

Visiting Students and Co-ops

Affiliated Faculty and Researchers

Staff