Did you solve your problem? Since you have a PhD, likely you may also be able to go through EB-1A, or EB-1B. Would happy to offline with you to share my experience on EB-1A.
I'm currently stuck in Singapore (well I'm actually traveling around SE Asia, since they don't have the draconian immigration policies of the US). But would def like to connect offline. email: deepak8612@gmail.com