David Rakestraw

David Rakestraw is a senior scientist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in Livermore, California. For more than a decade, he led multidisciplinary research and development teams to counter chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and explosive threats. Over the past 5 years, he has focused on STEM education where he is developing inquiry-based activities that take advantage of the sensors in smartphones. Prior to LLNL, he spent 12 years at the Sandia National Laboratories location in Livermore, California, where he engaged in a wide range of research and development activities which began with the development of laser-based diagnostics for studying combustion processes. For 6 years between his time at the two national laboratories, Rakestraw co-founded a company that specialized in applying microfluidics for chemical analysis. Rakestraw has a BS in Chemistry from Ohio Northern University and a PhD in Chemical Physics from Stanford University.