Sinopoli named Das Family Distinguished Professor

Bruno Sinopoli has been named the Das Family Distinguished Professor in Electrical Engineering in the McKelvey School of Engineering at Washington University in St. Louis. He was installed Jan. 16, 2020.

Sinopoli is professor and chair of the Preston M. Green Department of Electrical & Systems Engineering. He is a renowned expert in cyber-physical systems and control systems. His research focuses on robust and resilient design of cyber-physical systems, networked and distributed control systems, distributed interference in networks, smart infrastructures, wireless sensor and actuator networks, adaptive video streaming applications and energy systems. He also has an interest in social engineering issues, including investigating the mechanisms of influence of people on each other. He seeks to understand these mechanisms and to further this understanding in ways that can be beneficial to humanity.

"The Das family has been staunch supporters of the McKelvey School of Engineering for many years, and we are extremely grateful for their loyalty," said Andrew D. Martin, chancellor of Washington University in St. Louis. "With their shared interests in different applications of electrical engineering, Bruno Sinopoli is a natural choice for the Das Family Distinguished Professorship in Electrical Engineering."

"Professor Sinopoli's research is at the intersection of control theory and cyber-physical and network-systems," said Aaron F. Bobick, dean of the McKelvey School of Engineering and the James M. McKelvey Professor. "This interdisciplinary work is dramatically relevant to the now ubiquitous deployment of computing devices controlling physical systems. In addition, I expect Bruno's leadership to continue the strong upward trajectory of the department in terms of strength and relevance. All of us are truly grateful to Santanu, Kabita, Atanu and Arnab Das for supporting Bruno's research through this professorship."

Sinopoli joined Washington University Jan. 1, 2019, from Carnegie Mellon University, where he was a professor in the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering and co-director of the Smart Infrastructure Institute. He also had appointments in the Robotics Institute and in Mechanical Engineering.

In 2010, he received the George Tallman Ladd Research Award from the Carnegie Institute of Technology at Carnegie Mellon, as well as an NSF CAREER Award, which is awarded to junior faculty who model the role of teacher-scholar through outstanding research, excellent education and the integration of education and research.

He joined the faculty at Carnegie Mellon as an assistant professor in 2007. Previously, he was a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley, where he earned master's and doctoral degrees. He earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the Università di Padova in Padua, Italy.

The family of Santanu Das, chairman of the board of DomaniSystems Inc. in Shelton, Connecticut, established the Das Family Distinguished Professorship in Electrical Engineering in appreciation of the world-class education he received at Washington University. Whatever professional success he achieved, Das says that his Washington University experience "made it all possible."

Das came to Washington University in 1969 to pursue graduate study. His wife, Kabita, joined him in 1971. After earning a doctor of science degree in electrical engineering in 1973, he joined ITT Corp. in Columbus, Ohio, then moved to ITT's corporate research center in Shelton, Connecticut. In 1988, he and three colleagues founded TranSwitch Corp., based in Shelton, Connecticut. The international company developed and marketed innovative high-speed semiconductor solutions for telecommunications and data communications equipment markets.

Das retired from TranSwitch Corp. in 2009 and now serves on the boards of six high-technology companies.

Strong supporters of education and generous donors to Washington University, the Das family also has endowed the Robert Gregory Scholars Program in the Engineering school. Das received the university's Distinguished Alumni Award in 2001. He is a member of the National Council of the McKelvey School of Engineering and the New York Regional Cabinet and was a member of the university's Board of Trustees from 2000 to 2008.

Mrs. Das, who earned an undergraduate degree in education from Calcutta University, has specialized in early childhood education.

Sons Atanu and Arnab studied electrical engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Atanu, who earned bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Illinois, earned a law degree at Loyola University Chicago. He lives with his family in the Chicago area, where he is a senior patent counsel with Guntin & Gust and also is a senior lecturer in residence at Loyola University Chicago School of Law, where he teaches several intellectual property courses.

Arnab, who earned a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, earned a doctorate in electrical engineering from Penn State University. He is a member of the senior professional staff at John Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland.

Click on the topics below for more stories in those areas

• Brief
• Electrical & Systems Engineering