Ryan was named the William Nachbar endowed chair. William Nachbar was early faculty member of the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering. Prof. Nachbar joined UCSD in 1965 as a professor of applied mechanics. His research focused on structural mechanics and combustion. He retired from UCSD in 1989 and passed away in 2005.
Despite the different research areas, there are some similarities. Both Prof. Nachbar and Ryan moved to UCSD as associate professors from other California universities (Stanford and UCSB, respectively). Prof. Nachbar worked on the first missile designed to be launched underwater. Ryan has done research in underwater systems for communications, robotics, and 3D vision. Prof. Nachbar “loved camping, fly fishing, snorkeling, and Mozart. And he loved his family.” Ryan similarly loves the outdoors, music, and his family.
