I am Dr. Ada-Rhodes Short, and I have a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Oregon State University where my research focused on design, automation, and decision-making studied through the lens of computational cognition. While at OSU I greatly benefitted from the tutelage of my advisor Dr. Bryony DuPont. Additionally, I have a Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Colorado School of Mines where my research focused on modelling risk for autonomous decision making, and a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Baylor University (Sic’em bears!), where I did research related to bone and fossil reconstruction while working with Dr. Caroline Skurla and Dr. Brian Garner in the biomechanics and biomaterials labs.

I have nearly a decade of experience in cutting-edge robotics and artificial intelligence work for both private companies and major research universities, and I am currently a post doctoral researcher in the SEAK Lab at Texas A&M where I work with Dr. Dani Selva to make robot brains. 

My career highlights include winning multiple CES design innovation awards in the robotics product category, working on autonomous behavior for space robots, building the home robot Misty, helping to make Star Wars’ BB-8 a reality, and helping to cultivate the next generation of design engineers as a teacher and mentor.

A complete list of my patents and papers can be found on google scholar.

In addition to my academic and industry work, I am often involved in some form of advocacy work. While at Baylor I was a founding member and President of Sexual Identity Forum (now Gamma Alpha Upsilon), Baylor’s first open LGBTQIA+. student group. After moving to Oregon to finish my PhD I ran Corvallis Trans Support which facilitated a support group and provided mutual aid services to the queer and trans community of the Willamette Valley. For my work with Corvallis Trans Support I was awarded a Soroptimists International Ruby Award for Women Helping Women in 2018.