Current Members
Dr. Melodie French
Associate Professor
mefrench@rice.edu
KWGL 203
Google Scholar
CV
Dr. Amy Ryan
Lab Manager, Research Scientist
ar218@rice.edu
Google Scholar
CV
Interests: volcanology, high-T experiments, sintering
Dr. Jason Ott
Postdoctoral Associate
jno2@rice.edu
Personal website
Project: Feeling Salty about Cohesion: Using Halite to Model the Brittle-Ductile Transition
Maya Guise
PhD Student
mg250@rice.edu
Thesis: Non-Newtonian Rheology of Crystal Mush at Geologic Strain Rates
Josie Taylor
MS Student
jmt15@rice.edu
Thesis: The crystallographic controls on the frictional strength and rate dependence of phyllosilicates
Kemari Tinsley-Smith
MS Student
kt72@rice.edu
Thesis: The Evolution of Cohesion in Granular Fault Zones: An Experimental Study of Velocity-Strength Coupling
Edgar Villegas
PhD Candidate
eev3@rice.edu
Thesis: Frictional and Hydraulic Properties of Pelagic Carbonate Facies from the Northern Hikurangi Margin
Former Members
- Dr. Cailey Condit, Wiess Postdoctoral Fellow 2017-2018 – now faculty at University of Washington
- Dr. Celine Fliedner, PhD 2023 – now Geomechanics Engineer at CSGroup
- Dr. Ben Belzer, PhD 2024 – now staff at Lamont Doherty Earth Observatory
- Emory Mckenzie, MS 2024 – now staff at Chevron
- Dr. Stewart Williams, PhD 2024 – now staff at Stanford University
The Knighting of the Graduates
Updated February 2026
Designed with WordPress
Rice Rock Deformation Lab 