Presented by: The Honorable Alessandro Pertini, President of the Republic of Italy at the Palazzo della Civilta del Lavoro, Rome.

Dr. Pierce was the first person carefully to evaluate the various technical options in satellite communications and its financial prospects. While at Bell Labs, he designed and was responsible for the launch of the first active communications satellite, Telstar I. His work has resulted in the theoretical development of the possibilities of communications satellites and of broad-band digital transmissions via pulse code modulations and multivalent signals. Dr. Pierce is well known for his many books that explain clearly the science and technology of communications.

Dr. Pierce died in 2002.