Benjamin Allen joined the OGS in 2021 for a postdoctoral position with Nicholas Hayman to study fracture in soft materials. He got his PhD from Clark University in 2020 in Physics and his undergraduate degree from UC Merced, also in physics.
Benjamin grew up near Yosemite National Park, climbing rocks, and spending several summers and a few winters working and exploring the valley and highcountry working both for the concession company and volunteering with the interpretation division of the National Park Service. His studies have focused on the interface between fluids and granular materials starting with the impact resistance of cornstarch and water, sometimes called Oobleck, with Eric Brown in his undergraduate and a between year working at Yale University working. Benjamin then worked with Arshad Kudrolli through his graduate studies at Clark studying erosion mechanics on the particle scale, bed-load creep, and interaction dynamics between intruders in sedimented granular beds.
