Directory

Dr. Henry Kowalski (a.k.a. Doc K), professor of Mechanical Engineering
Ph.D. from Wayne State University in Mechanical Engineering, with expertise in engineering mechanics and aeronautical engineering.

Best known for unleashing his students' explosive creativity in his Experimental Mechanics class, Kowalski has spent 43 years encouraging "outside of the box" thinking. He likes teaching at Kettering because it has "the best students in the world to teach - very eager yet very pragmatic." He also sees them as future leaders.

He says Kettering offers "the best damn practical engineering, science or business education with real world experience anywhere. It's an ideal education for future leaders, CEOs, entrepreneurs or even intra-preneurs."

A bit of an intra-preneur himself, Kowalski has been known to trick his supervisor into purchasing the same kind of equipment three times under three different budget lines. He also lets students blow-up mailboxes and retrofit skeet shooters to test catcher's helmets.

Hidden talents and outside interests: When not stirring up trouble at Kettering, he likes to visit parts of the United States he's never been to before in his truck. 

Dr. Ilya I. Kudish, professor of applied mathematics, specializes in applied mathematics, tribology, contact mechanics, theory of elastohydrodynamic lubrication, crack mechanics, theoretical prediction of fatigue wear and pitting. He has written more than 100 articles, and is the author of a book entitled, "Mathematical Modeling of Wear and Fatigue in Rolling Bearings." He is a reviewer for Wear Journal and ASME Journal of Tribology. Dr. Kudish has extensive research experience.

Applied mathematics
Computational mathematics
Computer simulation/modeling
Contact mechanics
Contaminated environment
Crack mechanics
Elastohydrodynamic lubrication
Fatigue pitting
Fatigue/fracture
Numerical analysis
Tribology

Dr. Kumon received his B.S. in Physics and Mathematics from Michigan State University and his Ph.D. in Physics with specialization in physical acoustics from The University of Texas at Austin. He subsequently worked as a research physicist at the National Institutes of Standards and Technology (Materials Reliability Division), University of Windsor (Physics), Case Western Reserve University (Biomedical Engineering), and University of Michigan (Biomedical Engineering). 

Dr. Kumon's research interests are broadly themed around the use of ultrasound for materials characterization, diagnostic imaging, and therapeutic applications. In the biomedical arena, he has investigated high-frequency ultrasound for ex vivo characterization of breast cancer and endoscopic ultrasound for improved in vivo diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. Dr. Kumon has also studied the mechanisms and bioeffects of sonoporation, the therapeutic use of ultrasound and microbubbles to enhance the delivery of drugs to cells, via fluorescence and high-speed brightfield microscopy.  His most recent work has investigated the effects of HIFU on cardiac electrophysiology using optical and infrared imaging.

Dr. Kumon’s teaching experience has ranged from introductory to upper-division physics courses, mentoring undergraduate and graduate research projects, and instructing radiology residents in the physics and technology of ultrasound.  He is currently the advisor for both sections of Kettering’s Society of Physics Students (SPS) and Sigma Pi Sigma (Physics Honor Society) chapters. He appreciates the dedication of Kettering students and faculty alike in their efforts to promote an environment for productive teaching and learning.

Ultrasound-mediated drug delivery (sonoporation)
Therapeutic High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU)
Ultrasound imaging and tissue characterization for cancer diagnosis
Acoustical non-destructive evaluation and materials characterization
Nonlinear surface acoustic waves (SAWs) in crystalline and thin-film systems