Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Faculty of Engineering Sciences
Photo: Shay Shmueli, BGU
My life before BGU:
I was born in Rishon LeZion and graduated from HaGymnasia HaRealit high school. I began my academic career at BGU with two undergraduate degrees, in chemical engineering and chemistry (the nanotechnology program). I then studied for a master’s degree in environmental engineering at the Technion IIT, working on nitrogen transformation in the soil. My PhD research, at the Technion IIT as well, dealt with monitoring pesticide drift. Then I flew to upstate NY to join Cornell University’s Dept. of Soil and Crop Science, where I worked as a postdoctoral associate and researched remote sensing for monitoring agriculture and greenhouse gas balance.
"Exposure to air pollution can come from a range of different sources we never imagined: mattresses, natural furniture, and the like. Ultimately, it is most important to check the quality of the air around our noses, and to really understand what we are breathing in, we need to use individual monitoring" |
My research:
I work in a range of fields that share the use of advanced remote and proximal sensing tools (cameras and long- and short-range spectral sensors) for monitoring environmental and agricultural phenomena. Currently, I am studying exposure to air pollutants in the urban environment, greenhouse gases in agriculture, and precision agriculture.
Why BGU?
I got my BSc degree at BGU. I have very positive memories of this period and of student life in Beer-Sheva. The successful combination of academia and social life worked very well, and I hope to recreate it for this stage of my life as well.
Photo: Shay Shmueli, BGU
An insight from my research:
Exposure to air pollution can come from a range of different sources we never imagined: mattresses, natural furniture, and the like. Ultimately, it is most important to check the quality of the air around our noses, and to really understand what we are breathing in, we need to use individual monitoring.
Something that doesn’t appear on my CV:
I love learning how to do all sorts of things… When I was younger, I worked for significant periods of time as a handyman, cook, massage therapist (certified) and more. I like variety in my research as well and will always be open to new topics and ideas.
A source of inspiration:
About ten years ago I volunteered as a sports instructor for people with disabilities at the Kfar Tikvah community. Each and every one of them inspires me to this day.
When I grow up:
As a child I said I would be an accountant… I really loved money, and that’s very strange because I chose academia😊. Today my answer would be: “I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up.”
If I were not a researcher, I would…
Probably be an engineer of some kind. I love solving problems.
In brief:
» Facebook or Twitter? Neither
» Game of Thrones or the Simpsons? Game of Thrones
» Yoga or CrossFit? I need a ball… neither
» Hapoel or Maccabi? Maccabi. In my hometown it’s all about handball, and I was in Maccabi Rishon LeZion from the age of eight
» Chess or backgammon? Chess… It’s more interesting
» Steak or tofu? Steak grown from cultures
» Trekking or the spa? Spa without a doubt
» Car or train? Train, but a good one…
» X-Box or PlayStation? Neither. I get addicted to computer games easily, so I stay away
» Fortis or Sakharov? How can you choose? Both, together!
» Classical Europe or India? Classical Europe with good hotels and the spa from the earlier question
» Ocean or pool? Pool
» Radio or podcast? YouTube playlist
» Night or Morning? Morning
» Winter or summer? Winter, but not an Israeli winter; a snowy winter like I had during my postdoc in Ithaca, NY
» Cat or dog? Dog
» Film or Play? Film, and preferably as far from reality as possible
