Joseph Dawson Email & Phone Number

I’m currently an Oakridge Institute for Science and Engineering (ORISE) fellow at the Food andDrug Administration, where my work focuses on the development of decontamination methods forsingle-use PPE that was impacted by shortages during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. My goal has beento identify and test suitable decontamination methods that have shown promise, but were unable tobe granted emergency use authorization due to a lack of data. While this work is still ongoing, I havebriefed regulatory review scientists at the FDA’s Office of Surgical and Infection Control Devicesand have drafted one completed study for publication.During my graduate studies, my research focused on the chemistry, physics, and health impacts ofaerosol particles. In the health studies, I performed characterization studies of indoor air pollutiongenerated by household items, which are currently not regulated at the federal, state, or local levels. Ifound that devices such as hairdryers emit silver nanoparticles that can embed deeply in the lungswhen inhaled which can result in respiratory illness and premature death. The primary focus of mygraduate research was a study of the fundamental properties of biogenic aerosol particles and theimpact of those properties on the radiative budget of the Earth. I led a highly collaborative interinstitutional team of scientists and engineers to experimentally demonstrate the hygroscopic behavior of aerosol particles as theoretically predicted and for the first time studied them with the threeprimary hygroscopic growth measurement techniques simultaneously to identify the different biasingin the measurements. This fundamental information can serve to improve climate models andtranslate data between analysis types.While at Penn State, I gained valuable experience writing successful research proposals, mentoringstudents, and facilitating diversity and inclusion in science and engineering. For example, I wrote asuccessful NSF-funded proposal a graduate research fellowship, which supported most of my thesiswork. I also led three undergraduate students in student research and was responsible forundergraduate teaching labs while serving as a supervising TA. As a non-traditional student myself, Itook special interest in scientific outreach and mentoring to underrepresented communities. I havementored three undergraduate students, two of whom have gone on to attend graduate school. I HAVE also organized and hosted a lecture to inspire and prepare students attending community college for the path to graduate school.