Frank Tranghese

Boston, MA · fjtranghese@gmail.com

As autonomy becomes a larger and larger part of our everyday lives, a computer’s ability to sense the world around it is becoming increasingly important for developing cutting-edge technologies. My experiences in sensor system design and testing, digital signal / image processing, machine learning, and software engineering provides me with a unique perspective on a computer’s power to understand an analog world.

Experience

Graduate Research Assistant

Applied Electromagnetics Lab - Boston University

Sub-Millivolt Electric Field Sensor: Developed data acquisition and signal processing pipeline in MATLAB for highly sensitive electric field sensor. Utilized digital filters, spectral density estimation, and periodogram averaging to detect field in SNR less than 0 dB. Designed and coded MATLAB GUI to provide easy to use, rapid testing environment. Aided in refinement of sensor design.

Circuit Design and Testing: Built, tested, and refined analog filters, three-phase motor drivers, and PID motor controllers for optimizing electric field sensor signal output.

January 2017 - August 2017

Research Assistant and Laboratory Manager

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center - Harvard University

Profiled metabolic factors associated with GABRA5 signaling in medulloblastoma. Implemented dosing and conditioning of human cells lines for drug treatment and molecular assays. Managed all laboratory logistics; including ordering and supply management, solution preparation, and acted as liaison to collaborating scientists. Coordinated with administrative groups to maintain strict laboratory regulations and procedures.

July 2015 - June 2016

Visiting Research Scholar

Department of Biochemistry - Brandeis University

Studied molecular mechanisms of stress granule formation via chromatography and other established biochemical techniques. Investigated the function of Mer1 and its interaction with the spliceosome to determine its role in DNA splicing.

March 2015 - June 2016

Research Assistant

Boston Children's Hospital - Harvard University

Examined stress-mediated alternative protein translation and its role in cancer development. Researched disrupted circadian rhythm and resulting chromatin remodeling in medulloblastoma cells.

June 2013 - June 2015

Projects

Lane Tracking for Autonomous Cars

EC601 Product Design @ Boston University

Using Python and OpenCV, developed system that tracks unmarked roads with K-means clustering and morphological transformations on optical images. Implemented techniques present in the literature using image intensity for improved robustness to weather and lighting variations.



Video Compression and Transformations

EC504 Advanced Data Structures @ Boston University

Developed Java programming pipeline that encoded 100+ images into a playable video in under 5 minutes using chroma sub-sampling and discrete cosine transform. Allowed for optional video transformations (grayscale, Gaussian blur, color inversion) and output video quality selection.



Social Bias in Machine Learning

EC503 Learning From Data @ Boston University

Investigated and implemented in MATLAB methods for removing gender bias in word embeddings, a commonly used natural language processing technique. Used pre-trained word2vec on Google News text corpera. Tested methods' ability to remove gender bias from gender-neutral words (i.e. doctor, receptionist, etc.) while maintaining gender-specific semantic meaning (i.e. King, Brother, Aunt, etc.). Wrote detailed report and presented findings to peers.



Parallelizing 2D Convolution on GPU using OpenACC

EC500 E1 Parallel Programming and High Powered Computing @ Boston University

2D convolution is a widely-used, simple, yet computationally inefficient algorithm. Our aim was to explore methods to speed it up by implementing parallelization on GPUs with OpenACC. Coded in C/C++ and tested on Boston University's Shared Computing Cluster. Compared runtimes in serial CPU, parallelized CPU, and parallelized GPU.



Publications

Modulating native GABAA receptors in medulloblastoma with positive allosteric benzodiazepine-derivatives induces cell death

Journal of Neuro-oncology, Feb 2019 ( https://doi.org/10.1007/s11060-019-03115-0 )

First in vivo testing of novel compounds targeting Group 3 medulloblastoma using an implantable microdevice as a new paradigm for drug development

Journal of Biomedical Nanotechnology, June 2016 ( https://doi.org/10.1166/jbn.2016.2262 )

Education

Boston University

Master of Science
Electrical Engineering

GPA: 3.5

September 2016 - May 2018

Boston University

Bachelor of Arts
Biology · Psychology (double major)

GPA: 3.3

August 2007 - May 2011

Skills

Programming Languages
  • MATLAB
  • C++
  • Java
  • Python
  • HTML/CSS

Technologies
  • Data Acquisition Package (MATLAB)
  • DSP Systems Toolbox(MATLAB)
  • Simulink
  • PSpice/LTSpice
  • OpenCV
  • Git
  • IntelliJ
  • Bash Terminal
  • SSH
  • Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Powerpoint)

Technical Skills
  • Analog/Digital Filter Design
  • Control System Design
  • Stochastic Estimation and Bayesian Inference
  • Machine Learning
  • Computer Vision
  • Algorithm design and analysis
  • Parallel Programming
  • Biomedical Optics

Lab Equipment
  • Voltmeters
  • Function Generators
  • Oscilloscopes
  • Frequency Counters

Workflow
  • Agile Software Development

Interests

Hiker · Self-Described Foodie · Creative Writer · Nerd Culture Aficionado (Level 95 Loremaster) · Aspiring Web Designer · Tutor