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Articles - Publication Date 12.1.2001
R&D Stars To Watch
IW celebrates the contributions of individuals who drive innovation and provide the initial spark to economic growth.
By Vivian Pospisil, Jill Jusko and John Teresko
Zhenan Bao, chemist, Lucent Technologies Inc.'s Bell Labs, Murray Hill, N.J. Working as part of an interdisciplinary team comprised of Bell Labs scientists, Bao helped to create a molecular-scale organic transistor. This breakthrough, described in the Oct. 18 issue of Nature, opens the door to molecular electronics that may someday provide an alternative to silicon-based electronics. The continuing miniaturization of silicon-based circuits using current technology is expected by some to subside in about a decade as physical limitations are reached. Bao's colleagues in this research are Hendrik Schon and Hong Meng.
Trevor Baylis, inventor, London. In 1991 Baylis invented the Freeplay, a low-cost radio that worked on a hand crank, which initially was marketed to aid organizations for distribution in war zones and refugee camps. Over 2 million Freeplays have been sold. Now Baylis has created an electric shoe capable of charging batteries by pedestrian power for use in portable electronics such as cell phones and pagers. The shoe's heel is fashioned from piezoelectric crystal, which produces high voltage at a low current. The resulting electronic circuit connects to the charging battery.
Loren Carpenter, senior scientist, Pixar Animation Studios, Emeryville, Calif. In 1980, applying old mathematical concepts in a novel way, Carpenter created realistic computer-generated landscapes that viewers could move through and see from different perspectives. That application became part of the RenderMan software used in Pixar's movies and many other box-office hits, such as "The Lost World" and "The Hollow Man", and led to a 2001 Oscar for Carpenter and two other Pixar scientists.
Ed Catmull, president, Pixar Animation Studios, Emeryville, Calif. Catmull's development of texture mapping led to the creation of RenderMan software, used in Pixar films including "Toy Story" and "A Bug's Life", as well as other box-office hits. Catmull, named Pixar president in January, and two of his colleagues won an Oscar in 2001. He was inducted into the National Academy of Engineering in October 2000.
Isaac Chuang, research staff member, IBM Corp.'s Almaden Research Center, San Jose. A team led by Chuang designed a quantum computer that promises to solve some of the most difficult mathematical problems exponentially faster than a conventional computer. The Chuang team's device is a glass tube containing specially designed molecules that allowed the researchers to solve in one step a mathematical problem for which conventional computers require repeated cycles. Although commercial quantum computers are still many years away, IBM's device "gives us a great deal of confidence in understanding how quantum computing can evolve into a future technology," says Chuang.
Rob Cook, senior scientist, Pixar Animation Studios, Emeryville, Calif. While developing RenderMan software in the early 1980s, Cook created the original language for Shade Trees, programmable shading in software renderings. The RenderMan software is now used for all of Pixar's animated movies. Cook was one of three Pixar scientists to win a 2001 Oscar for "significant advancements in the field of motion picture rendering."
Alan Cox, programmer, Linux operating system, Swansea, Wales. Cox is gatekeeper for Linux, the operating system invented by Linus Torvalds. Cox incorporates bug fixes from developers around the world into the system, keeping it running smoothly. Cox also is affiliated with Red Hat Software, which develops applications for the system.
Raymond Damadian, president and chairman, Fonar Corp., Melville, N.Y. Damadian this year received the Lemelson-MIT Lifetime Achievement Award for his pioneering research of magnetic resonance scanning or imaging (MRI) technology, a non-invasive diagnostic tool widely used to detec
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