The Executive Committee of the ASME Applied Mechanics Division is pleased to congratulate Professor Ruike Renee Zhao, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, as the recipient of the 2026 Thomas J. R. Hughes Young Investigator Award. This award, which includes a medal, a certificate, and an honorarium, will be presented at the AMD Honors and Awards Banquet, during the 2026 ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition (IMECE 2026), to be held during November 8 – 12, 2026, at the Vancouver Convention Centre, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
The Young Investigator Award was established in 1998 and renamed the Thomas J.R. Hughes Young Investigator Award in 2008. The award recognizes special achievements in applied mechanics for researchers who have not reached their 41st birthday by December 31st of the year of the awards presentation.
Professor Zhao is being recognized for pioneering work on mechanics of ring origami and mechanics-guided discovery and development of the milli-spinner technology for treating life-threatening diseases.
Narayana R Aluru
Chair, ASME Applied Mechanics Division