Samuel Yniesta
Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering Researcher @ UCLA
Research Interest
My work at UCLA focuses on constitutive modeling of soils under dynamic loading. In particular, I am creating a 3D visco-plastic nonlinear model that captures the high rate of secondary compression of peat and its damping response under cyclic loading. For more information about this project, please see my research page.
As a researcher, I am interested in developing robust constitutive models that capture the complex behavior of soils under both static and dynamic loading. My philosophy is that to create a good model, one should identify the driving mechanisms of the soil behavior and describe it with well known engineering parameters. I want to create models that practitioners can use in their daily routine.
After my Ph.D. I plan on becoming a professor in order to contribute to the field of geotechnical engineering. I hope to pursue my research in the characterization of the soil behavior, and also to teach future engineers how to deal with seismic hazards.
Background
I grew up in France in Saint-Etienne, a city known for its coal mine and its soccer team. I completed the first half of my bachelors degree in Lyon at the Institut Universitaire de Technologie Lyon 1 (IUT Lyon 1) and then continued my studies in Paris at the Ecole Speciale des Travaux Publics (ESTP). While completing my bachelors degree, I studied Civil Engineering with a focus on Public Works. In 2012 I obtained a Master of Science at UCLA in Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering, after which I immediately started my Ph.D.
Student Clubs
I am involved in the Geo-Institute Graduate Students Organization (GI-GSO) UCLA chapter. At ESTP I was part of the managing team of the Junior Enterprise. Junior Enterprise (JE) are student-run businesses that give students practical experience working for private companies on short term projects. Visit the Jade website for more information about Junior Enterprise.
Other stuff...
When I am not deriving equations, I like to cook any kind of cuisine, watch both types of football, play the one where you mostly use your feet, and play racquetball.