2026 Perpall SURF Speaking Competition | Semi-Final Round Session A

The Doris S. Perpall SURF Speaking Competition was endowed by Robert (Bob) C. Perpall (BS ‘52 Mechanical Engineering; MS '56 Mechanical Engineering) in memory of his late wife as an incentive for Caltech students to give excellent oral presentations. Mr. Perpall strongly believed that effective communication skills were critical to one's future success.

For over thirty years, the Perpall SURF Speaking Competition has become an incredible force in improving the oral presentation skills of Caltech undergraduates.

The Student-Faculty Programs Office is proud to announce the Semi-Final Round of the 2026 Perpalls, featuring 29 Caltech undergraduates who were selected for their outstanding presentations during Fall Seminar Day. These semi-finalists, representing a wide range of research disciplines, were chosen by judges and session chairs for their clarity in communicating complex scientific ideas.

Session A is dedicated to projects within the Division of Biology and Biological Engineering and the Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering. The schedule of presentations is below, organized by time of presentation, name of the semi-finalist, and their mentors:

Schedule of Presentations

• 9:30 AM to 9:50 AM: Alex Xu with Daniel Mindiola (Professor of Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania), Dylan Grigas (Graduate Student in Chemistry, University of Pennsylvania), and Jonas Peters (Bren Professor of Chemistry)
• 9:50 AM to 10:10 AM: Neev Mangal with Katie Galloway (Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Mary Ehmann (Graduate Student in Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology), and Rustem Ismagilov (Ethel Wilson Bowles and Robert Bowles Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering; Merkin Institute Professor)
• 10:10 AM to 10:30 AM: Rishi Bhargava with Matt Thomson (Professor of Computational Biology; Investigator, Heritage Medical Research Institute) and Hao Wang (Graduate Student in Bioengineering)
• 10:30 AM to 10:50 AM: Easan Hamkins with Mikhail Shapiro (Max Delbrück Professor of Chemical Engineering and Medical Engineering; Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute) and Anthony Phung (Graduate Student in Bioengineering)
• 10:50 AM to 11:10 AM: Muping (Selene) Wang with Shu-ou Shan (Altair Professor of Chemistry) and Yelim Yi (Postdoctoral Scholar Research Associate in Chemistry)
• 11:10 AM to 11:30 AM: Anthony (Khalil) Lindo with Steve Mayo (Bren Professor of Biology and Chemistry; Merkin Institute Professor) and Andres Orta (Graduate Student in Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics)
• 11:30 AM to 11:50 AM: Vassilios Dresios with Theodor Agapie (John Stauffer Professor of Chemistry; Executive Officer for Chemistry) and Leo Morag (Graduate Student in Chemistry)