A casual look at the map of the United States makes one aspect of Maine clear, of all the 48 lower states, Maine is the notable for the dominant role of the coast in the life, geography and history of the state. As a program which links the College of Engineering to the School of Marine Science, the I.Ph.D. recognizes the role in the history, life and future of the state.

Currently seven graduate students are enrolled in or affiliated with the Engineering in the Natural Sciences Program including four current Ph.D. students. The current Ph.D. students are active in research in the optimization of the design of ship hulls, detection and avoidance of marine mammals in shipping whales, development of new technologies for monitoring of whales using suction cup tags and tidal energy generation. All of the work links the biological sciences to engineering, recognizing that students need to have both an understanding of the biology of the ocean and comfort with engineering principles in order to work in the complex ocean envelopment with an acceptable level of anthropogenic impact.

In addition, ten faculty are currently involved in the program including Maine faculty in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering as well as the School of Marine Sciences. Other affiliated faculty are currently from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, College of the Atlantic, Maine Martime Academy and West Chester University.

For information on the program please contact the program coordinator, Michael “Mick” Peterson, Jr., Professor of Mechanical
Engineering, michael.peterson@maine.edu