Robert Ghrist Named National Security Science and Engineering Faculty Fellow

The Department of Defense (DoD) has named Robert Ghrist, Andrea Mitchell University Professor in Mathematics and Electrical and Systems Engineering, a National Security Science and Engineering Faculty Fellow (NSSEFF). He is one of only seven university faculty scientists and engineers to have been awarded this prestigious five-year fellowship this year.

The NSSEFF program awards grants to top-tier researchers from U.S. universities to conduct long-term, unclassified, basic research of strategic importance to the DoD. These grants engage the next generation of outstanding scientists and engineers in the most challenging technical issues facing the Department. Ghrist's project title is "LOCAL-to-GLOBAL: Algebraic Topology for Data, Networks, and Systems," and will target "dimensionality reduction."

In addition to conducting this research, the NSSEFF Program includes opportunities for fellows to participate in the DoD research enterprise and share their knowledge and insight with leaders and researchers in the academic and security communities.

Ghrist has produced a widely influential body of work that applies mathematical methods to real-world engineering challenges, especially in robotics and wireless sensor networks. He specializes in topology, a branch of mathematics that provides tools to visualize abstract spaces, such as finding gaps in a security network or automating robotic movement across a factory floor.

Ghrist’s other honors include a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers and a CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation. In 2007 he was named by Scientific American as one of 50 top scientific innovators.