Rebeka Pálfi — HTBAA Fall 2026
About me
I’m Rebeka Pálfi, based in Budapest, Hungary. I finished my MSc in Industrial Product Design Engineering at Obuda University, and I’ve just started a PhD in Materials Sciences and Technologies there.
I came to biology through design, not the other way around. My background is in product design (and, going further back, garment construction and fashion design). Working with materials made me curious about where they come from and what happens to them after use. That curiosity led me to biodesign and bio-based materials: mycelium composites, agro-waste valorization, and now my PhD topic, fungal chitosan coatings.
Fungi are what hooked me first. I find them fascinating both as decomposers that break down what we consider waste and as organisms that can grow materials. My growing experiments so far have also shaped the way I think. Working with a living organism that follows its own pace has taught me patience and made me much better at planning my time. I’m still learning the biology behind the things I’ve been making, so there’s a lot I don’t know yet.
That’s exactly why I’m excited about HTBAA. I hope the course opens up branches of biology I haven’t encountered yet, and shows me tools and ways of thinking I can bring back into my materials research. I’m looking forward to experimenting and learning from everyone here.
Contact info
Homework, Labs, and Projects
See the nav bar on the left to look through my work for How To Biomanufacture Almost Anything (Fall 2026)!