Dr. Gary S. Settles Distinguished Professor of Mechanical Engineering Director of the Gas Dynamics Laboratory Penn State University (814)863-1504 Phone (814)865-0118 Fax Email Gary

Prof. Settles grew up on a farm in eastern Tennessee. His interest in fluid
dynamics, optics, and experiments began in his teen years with the
construction of miniature subsonic and supersonic wind tunnels, the latter
of which won awards at the 1967 International Science Fair and was featured
in the Amateur Scientist section of Scientific American magazine. He gained
industrial and laboratory experience through summer appointments at the US
Naval Ordnance Lab, NASA's Ames Research Center and the Boeing Company,
where he worked on both 747 and SST aerodynamics. He studied at the
University of Tennessee under an Alcoa Foundation scholarship, receiving the
Bachelor of Science Degree with honors in Aerospace Engineering in 1971.
       At Princeton University, supported by an NSF Traineeship, he studied
shock wave/boundary-layer interactions under Prof. S. Bogdonoff and earned
his Ph.D. degree in 1976. He subsequently worked with Dr. Martin Summerfield
at the Princeton Combustion Lab division of Flow Research, Inc. and on the
Princeton University Research Staff.
       In 1983 he was appointed Associate Professor of Mechanical
Engineering at Penn State, where he established the Penn State Gas Dynamics
Laboratory. The Gas Dynamics Laboratory has become known around the world
for its accomplishments in high-speed viscous/inviscid interactions and
optical flow visualization. The research of Prof. Settles and his students
on these topics was honored by the Penn State Engineering Society Award for
Outstanding Research in 1986 and its Premiere Researcher Award in 1992.
       The strong visual and artistic nature of the optical flow
visualization practiced for decades by Prof. Settles and his students has
been used in many film and television documentaries, museum exhibits, books,
encyclopedias and magazines around the world. Examples include the 3-D Imax
movie "Hidden Dimensions," the CBS science series "Universe", the NBC "Today
Show," CNN's "Science News," the series "Scientific Imagery" on German
Public Television (NDR), and the Learning Channel's series "Body Atlas."
       Prof. Settles has presented many invited lectures and seminars in the
US, Europe, Russia, China, and Japan. His society memberships include the
AIAA, ASME, ASHRAE, Sigma Xi, American Physical Society, Society of
Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers, and the Intl. Soc. for the Arts,
Sciences and Technology.
       Beginning in 1992, Prof. Settles and the staff and students of the
Gas Dynamics Lab undertook a redirection of their research efforts,
emphasizing the application of gas dynamics, nozzle design, and flow
visualization to a variety of non-traditional problems in areas ranging from
surface engineering, materials processing and manufacturing to aviation
security. This redirection has since resulted in 4 US patents, a
collaboration with GE Security resulting in the EntryScan3 explosive
detection portal, and the development of the world's largest optical flow
visualization system at Penn State.
       Fifteen Ph.D.'s and 30 Masters degree and numerous undergraduate
scholars have been educated by Prof. Settles since his arrival at Penn
State. There are typically 6-9 students in progress of obtaining their
degree in the Lab. He teaches a 2-semester course series on compressible
flow (ME 420 and ME 520) which consistently receives high ratings from
students in the Penn State College of Engineering.
       Settles's book, entitled Schlieren and Shadowgraph Techniques, was
published by Springer-Verlag in September 2001. He has written more than 200
articles and publications* during his career thus far. He was chosen by the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) as the 2004 Freeman Scholar,
for which he wrote an extensive review entitled "Sniffers: Fluid-Dynamic
Sampling for Olfactory Trace Detection in Nature and Homeland Security.
In December, 2006, Gary Settles was appointed  a Distinguished Professor of
Mechanical Engineering at Penn State in recognition of his teaching,
research, and service.
       Prof. Settles has two daughters: Lara, born in 1970, and Marianne,
born in 1977. In his spare time he enjoys oil painting, and is working on a
series of painting based on the field of fluid dynamics. He and his wife
Carrie Williams both ride motorcycles and always wear helmets.