Ryan Bales

Dr. M. Ryan Bales is a Principal Research Engineer in the Sensors and Electromagnetic Applications Lab (SEAL) at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI). He serves as Chief Scientist of the Sensor Systems Engineering Division, and specializes in FPGA and embedded system design for electronic warfare applications. His work has been the subject of 19 scholarly refereed publications, and he is an IEEE Senior Member and a professional engineer licensed in the state of Georgia.  He received the 2019 GTRI Award for Outstanding Performance in Research and Development.

Dr. Bales is passionate about community and professional service. He has served as an officer of the Atlanta IEEE Aerospace and Electronic Systems Society / Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society joint chapter since 2013, and is engaged with the leadership of the Atlanta Section. He is a member of the Association of Old Crows, Eta Kappa Nu, and the Order of the Engineer. He was a very active member of the Gamma Theta chapter of Eta Kappa Nu for four years as an undergraduate and graduate student. He received the Gamma Theta Advisor’s Leadership Award and the Founder’s Award for Service for his work in these roles. He continues involvement with HKN today, having served on the Professional Membership Committee since 2017, as Governor-at-Large from 2020-2022, and as the 2022 chair of the Graduate and Professional Activities Committee. He regularly volunteers in K-12 and collegiate STEM activities. Since 2006 he has served as a judge at more than 40 local, regional, and state science fairs in three states. Dr. Bales is certified by the state of Georgia to test and report water quality in Georgia watersheds, and collects data on the Etowah River.

Dr. Bales received his Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Engineering as an Honors Academy Fellow in 2004 and his Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering in 2006, both from the University of Missouri – Rolla. He received his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Electrical Engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 2011.