MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA, June 14, 2017
The Marconi Society, dedicated to furthering scientific achievements in communications and related technologies, announced today that optical fiber pioneer Dr. Robert Tkach has been elected Vice Chairman of the Marconi Society. Dr. Tkach is currently a member of the Board of Directors of the Marconi Society and chairs the Marconi Society Paul Baran Young Scholar section committee.
“After receiving the Marconi Prize in 2009, I really appreciated the opportunity to work with the other Fellows and with our Young Scholars to continue expanding on Marconi’s ground-breaking work. I believe the first job of the Marconi Society is to keep injecting new life into its actions and thinking by welcoming innovative young researchers each year,” says Dr. Tkach. “I think the Marconi Society has great potential and I am excited about working with both the Marconi Fellows and the Young Scholars to create further contributions.” Read more about Dr. Tkach’s thoughts on the Marconi Society.
Dr. Tkach is one of nine Marconi Fellows who have had ties to Nokia Bell Labs, including Dr. Robert Lucky, who served as its chairman for a decade.
The Marconi Society is currently supporting young researchers around the world by accepting nominations for the Paul Baran Young Scholar Award through June 30, 2017. Researchers born in 1989 or later who are doing innovative work in communications, engineering, the Internet / Internet of Things, security, wireless, machine learning and AI are encouraged to seek nomination.
In addition to his work with the Marconi Society and the Young Scholars, Dr. Tkach is highly active in the technical community. He is Director of Advanced Photonics Research for Nokia Bell Labs and he serves as Chair of Section 7 of the National Academy of Engineering. He has been General Co-Chair of OFC, Vice-President of the Optical Internetworking Forum, Associate Editor of the Journal of Lightwave Technology and a member of the IEEE LEOS Board of Governors.
Dr. Vint Cerf, Chairman of the Marconi Society and 1998 Marconi Fellow, says, “I am so grateful that Bob has agreed to serve as the Marconi Society’s Vice Chairman. I cannot think of a better partner; Bob has shown a tireless commitment to our Young Scholars and their Celestini Project, which supports aspiring scientists in developing nations.”
In honor of his foundational scientific accomplishments in the field of fiber optics, and his extraordinary industry leadership, Dr. Tkach has received the Thomas Alva Edison Patent Award from the Research and Development Council of New Jersey and is a Fellow of the Optical Society of America, the IEEE, and AT&T. Dr. Tkach received the 2008 John Tyndall Award jointly sponsored by the OSA and IEEE and in 2009 was elected to the National Academy of Engineering.
About the Marconi Society
Established in 1974 by the daughter of Guglielmo Marconi, the Nobel Laureate who invented radio, the Marconi Society promotes awareness of key technology and policy issues in telecommunications and the Internet, and recognizes significant individual achievements through the Marconi Prize and Young Scholar Awards. More information may be found at www.marconisociety.org. Subscribe. Follow: LinkedIn, Twitterand Facebook
