Stefania Palumbo

University of Trento, University of Naples Federico II

Papers

Total Citations

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About

Stefania Palumbo is a pioneering researcher in the mechanics of living systems, with a focus on the counterintuitive behavior of soft tensegrities and the role of buckling in biological structures. Her work bridges the gap between classical mechanics and biology, revealing how tensile and compressive instabilities govern the function and failure of natural systems. Palumbo’s most-cited paper, “Buckling soft tensegrities: Fickle elasticity and configurational switching in living cells” (2018, 42 citations), introduced a groundbreaking framework for understanding how cells harness configurational switching through fickle elasticity—a concept that has reshaped perspectives on cellular mechanics. More recently, her study “Bimodal buckling governs human fingers’ luxation” (2023) demonstrated for the first time that tensile buckling, a phenomenon long overlooked in living structures, plays a critical role in finger dislocation and stress shielding. This discovery challenges traditional views of mechanical failure in biology and opens new avenues for injury prevention and biomimetic design. Palumbo’s work is notable for its originality and interdisciplinary impact, earning recognition for revealing hidden mechanical principles in everyday biological phenomena.