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Dr. Ling is a professor of Geotechnical Engineering at Columbia University. He obtained his bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Kyoto University, Japan, and his master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Tokyo. He became a visiting/research assistant professor, and subsequently assistant professor at the University of Delaware (1994-1998). He joined Columbia University in 1998 and was promoted to full professor in 2007. He was a visiting associate professor at Harvard University in spring 2006. Dr. Ling holds visiting positions in several universities in China and Kazakhstan.

His major fields of research include geosynthetic-reinforced soil structures, soil constitutive modeling, geotechnical earthquake engineering, numerical and centrifuge modeling. He has also looked into rainfall-induced slope instability (geotechnical failures due to typhoons), in addition to earthquake induced deformation and failure of geosystems. Ground deformation due to deep excavation is one of his most recent research topics. He collaborates actively with international institutions/ agencies. He has made several reconnaissance trips related to the typhoon and earthquake disasters.

Dr. Ling received the Career Award from the National Science Foundation in 2001. He was a recipient of the IGS Award (given every 4 years) from the International Geosynthetics Society in 2014, and the Aitalyev Medal from the Kazakhstan Geotechnical Society in 2013. Dr. Ling has also been conferred honoraries from international institutions: Honorary Professorship from Shijiazhuang Railway Institute (China) in 2014, University Honorary Medal from Eurasian National University (Kazakhstan) in 2015.

Dr. Ling is the Editor-In-Chief for Transportation Infrastructure Geotechnology, Associate Editor for the ASCE Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering as well as the editorial board member for a few other journals. He serves on several technical committees in the International Society of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering, ASCE Engineering Mechanics Institute and ASCE Geo-Institute. Dr. Ling has published extensively in major journals and conferences, with over 100 journal papers and 120 conference publications. He has also organized several major conferences in New York City (Biot 2009) and abroad (such as Rome 2006 and Bologna 2013).





Education
Ph.D. (1993), University of Tokyo
M.S. (1990), University of Tokyo
B.S. (1988), Kyoto University
Title of Theses

Experience
July 2007 - Present: Professor, Columbia University
Visiting Associate Professor, Harvard University (Spring Semester, 2006 - with Prof. James R. Rice)
Jan 2000 - June 2007: Associate Professor, Columbia University
Jan 1999 - Dec 1999: Assistant Professor, Columbia University
Sept 1998 - Dec 1998: Adjunct Professor, Columbia University (in transition)
Jan 1994 - Dec 1998: Visiting Assistant Professor, Research Assistant Professor and Assistant Professor, University of Delaware
April - Dec 1993: Research Fellow, University of Tokyo

Associate Land Surveyor, Japan (registration # H17-3820), 2005

Awards
IGS Award, International Geosynthetics Society (September 2014, in Berlin)
Honorary Professor, Shijiazhuang Tiedao University, China (June, 2014) news
Aitalyev Medal, Kazakhstan Geotechnical Society (September 2013, in Paris)
2002 Award of Technology, International Geosynthetics Society, Japan Chapter (with Mohri and Kawabata)
Career Award (2001-2006), National Science Foundation
engineering news, The Record

Research Interest
Combination of experimental and analytical studies on following subjects:
Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering, Geoenvironmental Engineering, Soil Behavior
Geosynthetic and Its Application to Infrastructures (retaining walls, slopes, pavements ..)
Permanent Displacement of Structures subject to Earthquake and Cyclic Load, such as Ocean Wave
Static and Dynamic Interactions between Pipelines and Soils
Laboratory and Large-Scale Geotechnical Testing (Shaking Table and Centrifuge)
Poromechanics/biomechanics
Professional Service
Editor-In-Chief, Transportation Infrastructure Geotechnology (2013-, with Jonathan Wu) submission
Associate Editor, Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, ASCE
Editorial Board, Journal of GeoEngineering (2011-)
Member of Editorial Board, Journal of Earthquake and Tsunami

Engineering Mechanics Division, ASCE (Poromechanics Committee)
Engineering Mechanics Division, ASCE (Inelastic Behavior Committee, until 2012)
Engineering Mechanics Committee, ASCE Metropolitan Section (2011-)
Member of Editorial Board, Geosynthetics International , International Geosynthetics Society (1994-2006, resigned in 2006)
Geosynthetics Committee, Geo-Institute, American Society of Civil Engineers
Geotechnical Committee, ASCE Metropolitan Section (2005-2008)
Chair, NCHRP Project Panel D125901, Transportation Research Board (-2011)
Member, TC 101, International Society of Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical Engineering (2011-)
Member, Public Relation Committee, ISSMGE (2011-)

Reviewer for:
Proceedings A, the Royal Society, London
Journal of Engineering Mechanics
, ASCE
Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, ASCE
Journal of Transportation Engineering, ASCE
Journal of Environmental Engineering, ASCE
Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE
International Journal of Geomechanics, ASCE
Journal of Bridge Engineering, ASCE
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, ASCE
Geotechnique
Acta Geotechnica
Bulletin of Earthquake Engineering
Geotechnical Testing Journal, American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM)
Geosynthetics International, International Geosynthetics Society
Geotextiles and Geomembranes
International Journal of Analytical and Numerical Methods in Geomechanics

Computer Methods in Applied Mechanics and Engineering

Mechanics Research Communications
Canadian Geotechnical Journal
Soils and Foundations
Journal of Chinese Institute of Engineers, Taiwan
Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering
International Journal of Physical Modeling in Geotechnics

Geosynthetics '95 (Nashville), '97 (Long Beach), '99 (Boston), 01 (Oregon) Conferences, North American Geosynthetics Society
Testing of Geosynthetic Clay Liners, ASTM STP 1308
Measuring and Modeling Time-Dependent Soil Behavior , ASCE Special Technical Publication
Remediation in Rock Masses, ASCE Special Technical Publication
6th International Conference on Geosynthetics, Atlanta, GA, 1998
8th International Conference on Geosynthetics
, Yokohama, Japan, 2006
GeoCongress 98, Boston
GeoDenver, 2000, 2007
5th International Conference on Case Histories in Geotechnical Engineering, New York, 2004

National Science Foundation
Science Council, Hong Kong
US Civilian Research and Development Foundation

Others:
Court Expert Witness
US/PRC Earthquake Engineering Research Exchange Program (National Science Foundation; 1997, 2000)

Ph.D. Thesis Committees


University of Tokyo (1993)


University of Tokyo (2004)


Akamon


Campus


SEIKEN (生産技術研究所)
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this old building has been demolished

Spring


Fall


Fall


Winter

New Building at Old IIS Site





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duPont Hall, home to Civil Engineering at the University of  Delaware  - the view has since then been changed forever



duPont Hall in the snow
Aug 24, 2017