Join the SimCenter Research Engagement Meetings—a new forum where natural‐hazards researchers across academia, industry, and government come together to share their work, exchange best practices, and help steer the future of our open-source simulation tools. Whether you’re a seasoned user demonstrating novel workflows or you’re exploring how SimCenter can accelerate your next project, these one-off virtual events are your chance to connect, learn, and influence ongoing tool development.
Participation in these online meetings is open to everyone who registers.
Upcoming Events:
Title: Operationalizing Virtual Damage Assessments After Major Hurricanes: A Case Study from Hurricane Ian
Host: Tracy Kijewski-Correa, Professor, University of Notre Dame
Date: March 25, 2026 12:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Registration: https://berkeley.zoom.us/meeting/register/gF6fyKsPQ-OZwSAqzAIAWw
Abstract
This session will showcase a methodology for component-level virtual damage assessment (VDA) of building structures using primarily pre- and post-storm street-level and aerial imagery data. Essential to this effort was an inventory development process that determined foundation type and first-floor elevation (FFE) of each building using street-level and aerial imagery. The session will share lessons learned in the application of this methodology to assess exterior damage of the 3,408 structures impacted by Hurricane Ian (2022) in Fort Myers Beach, Florida. Our session will highlight how this data set can be utilized to improve understanding of hurricane damage to buildings and identify important determinants of performance suitable for regional hurricane loss modeling, while exploring ways such efforts could be automated in the future through machine learning, possibly with humans in the loop.
List of Speakers:
Mehrshad Amini (University of Rhode Island)
Dan Cox (Oregon State University)
Title: Addressing aleatoric variability in surrogate modeling applications for natural hazards engineering
Host: Alexandros Taflanidis, Professor, University of Notre Dame
Date: Apr 9, 2026 9:30 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Registration: https://berkeley.zoom.us/meeting/register/WgV5pOL2RXC-MvbuVyYKIQ
Abstract
Surrogate models, also known as metamodels or emulators, have gained popularity for promoting computational efficiency across a wide range of applications in Natural Hazards Engineering (NHE). They correspond to data-driven predictive models, and are used to approximate the input/output relationship of a complex numerical model, based on an ensemble of simulations from that model representing the training data for the metamodel development. An important challenge in establishing surrogate models for NHE applications is the treatment of the aleatoric variability associated with the hazard description, such as motion-to-motion variability in seismic vulnerability assessment, tidal-phase influence in flood predictions or wind speed fluctuations in wind engineering. This variability is typically expressed as high-dimensional or non-parametric uncertainty, and poses challenges to conventional surrogate modeling techniques.
This panel discusses the implementation of surrogate modeling to NHE, focusing on how aleatoric variability can be addressed. It starts with a quick overview of the problem and then provides a concise summary of different techniques to accommodate the aleatoric variability within the surrogate model development: (i) estimation of statistics; (ii) explicitly establishing predictions for the variability using physics-based or data-driven dimensionality reduction; (iii) using a stochastic emulation formulation. Discussion subsequently shifts to providing more details for solution (iii); a computational efficient implementation for accommodating heteroscedastic predictions is presented and the importance of utilizing appropriate explanatory variables for describing the hazard is also showcased. Finally, an application to regional risk assessment for a portfolio of bridges is presented.
List of Panelists:
Alexandros Taflanidis, Professor, University of Notre Dame (Lead)
Sang-ri Yi, Assistant Professor, Rice University (Co-Lead)
Mia Lochhead, PhD Student, Stanford University
Past Events:
Title: Global Sensitivity Analysis Applications to Natural Hazards Engineering
Host: Alexandros Taflanidis, University of Notre Dame
Date: November 11, 2025, 10:30 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Abstract
Global sensitivity analysis (GSA) plays a prominent role in engineering analysis and design. Its objective is to quantify the importance of the different model inputs with respect to their impact on the model output. This quantification provides valuable insights into the system behavior, and it can be used to guide various tasks, including dimensionality or uncertainty reduction and optimal decision making. Different approaches exist to perform GSA, with the most popular one being variance-based decomposition utilizing Sobol’ indices. Variance-based GSA considers the decomposition of the total variance to the contributions coming from each of the inputs as well as to the interactions between groups of inputs. Despite its utility, performing GSA entails a significant computational burden, something that has limited its widespread adoption. This burden is amplified for problems that include a large number of outputs.
This panel discusses the implementation of GSA to Natural Hazards Engineering (NHE). It starts with a quick introduction of GSA, including formulation, interpretation of sensitivities, and utility in practical applications. It then discusses the practical GSA estimation, and presents a computationally efficient GSA implementation using the SimCenter quoFEM tool. This implementation covers single and multi-output applications. An educational module for introducing GSA in the classroom is also presented. The discussion then shifts to four specific GSA applications, led by four different experts: (i) GSA for identifying critical risk factors that affect the tsunami evacuation risk of coastal community to guide more effective tsunami evacuation, (ii) GSA for exploring influence of model parameter selection on seismic loss and recovery estimates, (iii) GSA for real-time storm surge forecasting and adaptive Monte Carlo implementation, (iv) GSA for guiding key considerations in the modeling and design of underground pipeline systems. Finally we open the discussion to all other participants and guests, exploring the opportunities offered through GSA on other NHE applications.
List of Participants:
Alexandros Taflanidis, Professor, University of Notre Dame (Lead)
Sang-ri Yi, Assistant Professor, Rice University (Co-Lead)
Gaofeng Jia, Associate Professor, Colorado State University
Pouria Kourehpaz, Postdoctoral Researcher, University College London
WoongHee Jung, Postdoctoral Researcher, Lehigh University
Gersena Banushi, Research Specialist, University of California at Berkeley
Title: Simulating Regional Earthquake Impacts on Buildings: Recent and Emerging Applications
Host: Greg Deierlein, Stanford University
Date: November 13, 2025, 9:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Abstract
This meeting will highlight recent advances in computational workflows and data resources for conducting high-resolution, regional-scale simulations of earthquake impacts on the built environment. The session will feature an overview of NHERI SimCenter tools— including BRAILS++, fWHALE/R2D, Pelicun, and other supporting applications—used to develop building inventories, generate earthquake hazard data, model structural response and damage, and estimate resulting losses, consequences, and recovery trajectories. Several ongoing research efforts will be presented to illustrate emerging applications, demonstrate interoperability among software components, and discuss lessons learned from large-scale simulation studies. The meeting aims to foster exchange among researchers and practitioners, inviting participants to share their own experiences, successes, and challenges in implementing regional earthquake simulations and in contributing to the broader development of open, community-driven workflow tools.
Presenters:
Adam Zsarnoczay, SimCenter
Carlos Molina Hutt, University of British Columbia
Title: HydroUQ Updates: New MPM Capabilities, Celeris Boussinesq Workflows, and DesignSafe Remote Jobs
Host: Pedro Arduino, Univ. of Washington
Date: November 18, 2025, 10:30 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Abstract
This seminar introduces HydroUQ, an open-source tool for tsunami and storm-surge analysis with built-in uncertainty quantification. We will focus on recent functionality in two engines: (1) MPM—new large-deformation workflows for debris–structure–soil interaction (impact, runup, erosion/scour), streamlined pre/post processing, and remote multi-GPU execution on DesignSafe; and (2) Celeris (Boussinesq)—faster coastal wave propagation and runup modeling, improved site setup with custom topo-bathymetry, in-situ probes, and integration with BRAILS building inventories for scenario screening. We’ll walk through end-to-end examples—selecting events, setting inputs and uncertainties, launching DesignSafe runs (MPM), and interpreting results—using brief digital-flume and neighborhood-scale demos.
Presenter
Justin Bonus
Title: Advancing Wind Engineering Research and Education through WE-UQ
Host: Seymour M.J. Spence, University of Michigan
Date: Dec 3, 2025 10:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Abstract
This event will showcase the latest capabilities of the WE-UQ application and highlight its growing role as both a research and educational platform within the SimCenter ecosystem. The session will demonstrate recent advances in modeling and simulation for wind effects on structures and introduce the educational module developed around WE-UQ, designed to help students and researchers explore Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) for wind load evaluation using WE-UQ. The meeting will provide a forum for discussion on how these developments can further support research, teaching, and community engagement in performance-based wind engineering.
Meeting Leaders
Adam Zsarnoczay, Stanford University
Catherine Gorle, Stanford University
List of Presenters
Catherine Gorle, Stanford University
Adam Zsarnoczay, SimCenter/NHERI
David Roueche, Auburn University
Title: Enhanced Capabilities of R2D for Regional Disaster Risk Analysis
Host: Rachel Davidson, University of Delaware
Date: December 4, 2025, 9:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Abstract
his event brings together modelers and social science researchers interested in regional-scale disaster simulation. We aim to share recent advances in the R2D Regional Analysis platform and offer a forum to discuss how the new capabilities can be used to advance regional disaster analysis. In particular, we will discuss the recent inclusion of the ability to generate synthetic (i.e., realistic but not real) households and assign them to residential buildings, offering a powerful way to link engineering analysis of building performance with household disaster experiences.
Moderator: Rachel Davidson, Professor, University of Delaware.
Organizers
Rachel Davidson, University of Delaware
Ann-Margaret Esnard, Georgia State University
Adam Zsarnóczay, Stanford University
Panelists
Shangjia Dong, University of Delaware
Sara Hamideh, Stony Brook University
Ali Nejat, Texas Tech University
Elaina Sutley, University of Kansas
Title: End‑to‑End Workflows for Wind Engineering and Uncertainty Quantification
Hosts: Seymour M.J. Spence (University of Michigan)
Catherine Gorle (Stanford University)
Date: March 11, 2026, 10:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
Abstract
This Research Engagement Meeting will highlight practical research workflows enabled by the WE-UQ application and its growing role within the SimCenter ecosystem. Short presentations by researchers will demonstrate how WE-UQ has been leveraged to streamline end-to-end studies of wind effects on engineered systems and communities, from problem setup and simulation execution to post-processing and interpretation of results. The session will include time for questions and conversation, allowing attendees to discuss ideas, share experiences, and explore how WE-UQ-based workflows can be adapted to their own applications.
List of Speakers:
Sejin Kim (Chungbuk National University)
Tanmay Vora (University of Michigan)
Hanshu Zhang (Coastal Carolina University)
Prethesha Alagusundaramoorthy (Auburn University)
We offer online platforms where natural hazards researchers, practitioners, and policy makers can come together to collaborate, share knowledge, and learn from each other. The following digital tools are leveraged to facilitate communication and collaboration among members because of our worldwide geographic distribution:
We offer these mechanisms for professional development, networking, and peer support.