Family Ties x3 for PhD Student

James and Natalie Allison'a triplets

It's a reasonable bet that when James Allison came to ME he was expecting to leave with his doctorate. It's also a reasonable bet that he didn't expect to leave with three new members of his family, but that's the case, as he and his wife Natalie welcomed triplets Jonathan Christopher, Brian Daniel, and Michael Ethan Allison on August 16. The couple also has a 16-month-old daughter, Ellie.

"When we found out we were going to have triplets, it was a good thing we were both sitting down," said Allison. "We were both in a state of shock for the first few days. Still, we had a good time showing our ultrasound pictures to our friends and family and watching their reactions of astonishment."

There are a few sets of identical twins in the couple's extended families, but no triplets, and identical twins in an extended family do not indicate a propensity for multiples, while fraternal twins do. "These triplets were unexpected on all accounts," said Allison, "but we are grateful and excited for their arrival."

Allison came to ME following his graduation with a BSME from the University of Utah in 2003. Since then, he has earned MSE degrees in both Mechanical Engineering (2004) and Industrial and Operations Engineering (2005). He and Natalie decided to come to study on North Campus for both personal and academic reasons.

"There were two primary factors that contributed to our decision to come to Michigan," said Allison. "One was the opportunity to work with Professor Panos Papalambros, and the other was the environment that is supportive of families we observed here at Michigan. I certainly did not expect to have four children while in graduate school, but a family-friendly environment was an important consideration since I had been married for several years already when I applied for graduate school. I had offers from both MIT and Stanford as well, but neither could provide me with the opportunity to research design optimization like Michigan could. Right now we are both very pleased about our decision to come to Michigan."

Allison's focus is on optimal design of complex systems, with a special interest in using design optimization to identify ways of reducing energy consumption. It's a continuation of his long term interest in design. A high school auto shop class led to further interest into how and why engines were designed the way they were. Thanks to a supportive teacher, Allison's passion for mechanical engineering was launched.

"Before I graduated from high school graduation, my math teacher told me that I should not be fixing cars for a living, but instead should be designing them," said Allison. "Since high school, I've always had intentions of pursuing a degree in mechanical engineering, but I wanted to gain some depth of practical knowledge and experience first. So, I worked as an automotive technician and then as an assistant service manager, and earned a degree in automotive technology before going back to school for engineering.

"By my second year as an engineering undergraduate student, I knew I wanted to pursue a PhD, but I initially struggled to find what niche of mechanical engineering fit me best. I didn't know design could be a research topic until the start of my fourth year when a new faculty member at the University of Utah, Eberhard Bamberg, then a recent graduate of MIT, enlightened me. After a lot of thought, I discovered that it was specifically design optimization that fascinated me. As I was preparing my graduate school applications, I discussed my plans with Dr. Jose Castillo, a University of Michigan graduate. He told me about Professor Papalambros at Michigan, whose research appeared to be very well aligned with my interests."

Allison's pursuit of his studies has led to a number of honors, including being named a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow in 2004, membership in Tau Beta Pi, and being elected to Who's Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges in 2002.