This block group hides your featured image, remove this block group to show your featured image again.
Anuj Kumar, who completed his Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics in June 2023 with Professor Pascale Garaud and is currently the Morrey Visiting Assistant Professor of Mathematics at UC Berkeley, was awarded the Andreas Acrivos Dissertation Award in Fluid Mechanics of the American Physical Society. This award recognizes one exceptional early-career scientist each year who has performed original doctoral thesis work of outstanding scientific quality and achievement in the area of fluid dynamics.
Kumar was awarded this prize for “deep insight into the Navier-Stokes equations using novel analytical methods, establishing rigorous bounds for optimal turbulent transport, and bridging applied mathematics with fluid flow physics.”
Describing his work, Kumar said: “Despite its ubiquity in both natural and engineering flows, turbulence remains one of the most challenging and enigmatic phenomena in physics. Governed by the notoriously difficult-to-solve Navier–Stokes equations, its chaotic and multiscale nature presents significant challenges for both experimental and computational studies. My Ph.D. research proposes a unique way to overcome these challenges by focusing on problems that require understanding new flow physics, bringing together tools from mathematical analysis and computational fluid dynamics while always keeping practical engineering applications at the forefront. For instance, in one study, I developed three-dimensional branching flows, resembling tree-like structures, for efficient heat transfer in a fluid medium.”
“I am fortunate to be part of the Applied Math department, which fosters and encourages such cross-disciplinary research. The beautiful campus of UC Santa Cruz, surrounded by towering redwoods and the views of the Pacific Ocean has provided a peaceful environment for reflection, helping me think clearly and deeply whenever I was stuck on a difficult problem,” he added.