Rangachar Narayana Iyengar
Encyclopedia
Professor Rangachar Narayana Iyengar is a renowned civil engineer from India. He was with the Indian Institute of Science
, Bangalore for about four decades. He has been the director of Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee (1994–2000). He is currently a Raja Ramanna Fellow, Editor of 'SADHANA' published by the Indian Academy of Sciences
, Bangalore and the Director, Center for Disaster Mitigation (CDM) at Jain University
, Bangalore. Apart from his contributions to Engineering, he is also widely recognized for his work in History of Science.
He is a fellow of Indian Academy of Sciences
, Indian National Academy of Engineering
and National Academy of Sciences, India
. He was awarded the Alexander Von Humbolt Fellowship (Senior 1978-80, 1992 and 1997). He is the recipient of the Sir M Visvesvaraya award (Government of Karnataka 1996) for senior scientists for lifetime contributions to science and technology. He has held visiting positions at the Purdue University, Brooklyn Polytechnic, New York and Distinguished Schimdt Visiting Chair, Florida Atlantic University (1995). He has lead field investigations after the Khilari (1993), Chamoli (1999) and Kutch (2001) earthquakes. He has been a consultant to various industries and research & development organizations in India including NPC, IGCAR, DRDO, RDSO, BHEL and Kerala State Government.
(IISc), Bangalore as Masters student and obtained his M.Sc. (Engineering) (1966) and PhD (1970) from IISc. His PhD thesis on stochastic modeling of earthquake loads was the first doctoral thesis in the country in the area of random vibrations. He joined IISc as a faculty member in 1969 and became a Professor in 1986. Until his reteirment, he was the KSIIDC Chair Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering and also Professor in Center for Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at the Indian Institute of Science
, Bangalore.
After his retirement from IISc, he has been associated with the Jain University
, Bangalore and is instrumental in setting up Underwriters Laboratories
-Jain Fire Laboratory, India (UL-JFL) which he heads now. The UL-JFL is a state-of-art engineering laboratory devoted to fire safety education and research that will promote industry academia interaction, contributing to mitigation of fire hazard in the Indian habitat.
Indian Institute of Science
Indian Institute of Science is a research institution of higher learning located in Bangalore, India. It was established in 1909.-History:After a chance meeting between Jamsetji N...
, Bangalore for about four decades. He has been the director of Central Building Research Institute, Roorkee (1994–2000). He is currently a Raja Ramanna Fellow, Editor of 'SADHANA' published by the Indian Academy of Sciences
Indian Academy of Sciences
The Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore was founded by Sir C. V. Raman, and was registered as a Society on 24 April 1934. Inaugurated on 31 July 1934, it began with 65 founding fellows. The first general meeting of Fellows, held on the same day, elected Professor Raman as President, and adopted...
, Bangalore and the Director, Center for Disaster Mitigation (CDM) at Jain University
Jain University
Jain University is a university in Bangalore, India. Founded as Sri Bhagawan Mahaveer Jain College in 1990, the University offers international undergraduate & postgraduate programmes along with certificate programmes in sports science and related areas. It is a member of the Jain Group of...
, Bangalore. Apart from his contributions to Engineering, he is also widely recognized for his work in History of Science.
He is a fellow of Indian Academy of Sciences
Indian Academy of Sciences
The Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore was founded by Sir C. V. Raman, and was registered as a Society on 24 April 1934. Inaugurated on 31 July 1934, it began with 65 founding fellows. The first general meeting of Fellows, held on the same day, elected Professor Raman as President, and adopted...
, Indian National Academy of Engineering
Indian National Academy of Engineering
The Indian National Academy of Engineering was founded in 1987 with the aim of promoting and advancing the practice of engineering and technology in the country....
and National Academy of Sciences, India
National Academy of Sciences, India
The National Academy of Sciences, India is the oldest Science Academy in India. It is located in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh...
. He was awarded the Alexander Von Humbolt Fellowship (Senior 1978-80, 1992 and 1997). He is the recipient of the Sir M Visvesvaraya award (Government of Karnataka 1996) for senior scientists for lifetime contributions to science and technology. He has held visiting positions at the Purdue University, Brooklyn Polytechnic, New York and Distinguished Schimdt Visiting Chair, Florida Atlantic University (1995). He has lead field investigations after the Khilari (1993), Chamoli (1999) and Kutch (2001) earthquakes. He has been a consultant to various industries and research & development organizations in India including NPC, IGCAR, DRDO, RDSO, BHEL and Kerala State Government.
Career
R N Iyengar joined the Indian Institute of ScienceIndian Institute of Science
Indian Institute of Science is a research institution of higher learning located in Bangalore, India. It was established in 1909.-History:After a chance meeting between Jamsetji N...
(IISc), Bangalore as Masters student and obtained his M.Sc. (Engineering) (1966) and PhD (1970) from IISc. His PhD thesis on stochastic modeling of earthquake loads was the first doctoral thesis in the country in the area of random vibrations. He joined IISc as a faculty member in 1969 and became a Professor in 1986. Until his reteirment, he was the KSIIDC Chair Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering and also Professor in Center for Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at the Indian Institute of Science
Indian Institute of Science
Indian Institute of Science is a research institution of higher learning located in Bangalore, India. It was established in 1909.-History:After a chance meeting between Jamsetji N...
, Bangalore.
After his retirement from IISc, he has been associated with the Jain University
Jain University
Jain University is a university in Bangalore, India. Founded as Sri Bhagawan Mahaveer Jain College in 1990, the University offers international undergraduate & postgraduate programmes along with certificate programmes in sports science and related areas. It is a member of the Jain Group of...
, Bangalore and is instrumental in setting up Underwriters Laboratories
Underwriters Laboratories
Underwriters Laboratories Inc. is an independent product safety certification organization. Established in 1894, the company has its headquarters in Northbrook, Illinois. UL develops standards and test procedures for products, materials, components, assemblies, tools and equipment, chiefly dealing...
-Jain Fire Laboratory, India (UL-JFL) which he heads now. The UL-JFL is a state-of-art engineering laboratory devoted to fire safety education and research that will promote industry academia interaction, contributing to mitigation of fire hazard in the Indian habitat.
Research
Professor Iyengar's fields of expertise have encompassed the areas of structural dynamics, random vibrations, earthquake engineering, disaster mitigation, railway track dynamics, rainfall modeling and history of science. He has inspired several generations of students in the above areas of research. He has supervised 11 PhD students.Honors and distinctions
- Fellow, Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore.
- Fellow, Indian National Academy of Engineering, New Delhi.
- Fellow, National Academy of Sciences, Allahabad.
- Member, Asia-Pacific Academy of Materials.
- Member, European Academy of Sciences, Brussels
- Alexander Von Humboldt Fellowship (Senior), Germany 1978 to 80, 1992, 1997
- First Prize of the Railway Board for the paper "Identification of Damping in Railway Vehicles under Running Condition" 1989-90.
- National Representative, General Assembly of IUTAM 1987-92
- Plenary Speaker GAMM Conference, on Applied Mechanics, Leipzig, Germany, 1992
- Distinguished Schmidt Visiting Chair, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, U.S.A. 1995,
- Shelter Award by the Shelter Promotion Council of India, Calcutta, 1996
- Sir M. Visvesvaraya Award for Senior Scientists for lifetime Contribution to Science and Technology ; Govt. of Karnataka, 1996.
- Narayanan Memorial lecture Award, Acoustical Society India, 1996.
- 18th ISET Annual Lecture Indian Society of Earthquake Technology, 1997
- A.K. Sen Memorial Lecture Award, IIT, Kharagpur, 1998.
- Chairman and Organizer IUTAM Symposium on "Nonlinearity and Stochastic Structural Dynamics", 4–8 January 1999,? IIT? Madras.
- Invited Sectional Lecture, ICTAM, Chicago, USA. August 2000,
- Swamy Rao Memorial Lecture Award, JNTU, Kakinada, 2001.
- NRDC-Technology Day Award for "Pollution Control Device for Brick Kilns" (Shared), 2001
- Member, Editorial Board, J. of Probabilistic Engineering Mechanics, Eisevier Applied Sciences, U.K.(1994–2004)
- Member, Editorial Board, Sadhana, Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore.
- Member, Editorial Board, J. of Indian Soc. of Earthquake Technology.
- Associate Editor, J. of Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore (1987–92).
- Editor-in-chief, Sadhana-Journal of Engineering Science, Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore.
In media
- The Hindu: Preparing for a big earthquake
- The Hindu : `Strategy to reduce quake-associated damage must'
- The Hindu : 'Tremors cause panic in KGF'
- The Hindu : 'Kashmir earthquake: history repeats itself'
- Interview with R N Iyengar, Director, CBRI, Roorkee, India
- The Hindu Business Line: 'Building successes'
- Outlook: 'A Hundred Ground Zeroes'
- American Scientist: 'Kashmir Valley Megaearthquakes'
External links
- Prof. R N Iyengar's IISc homepage
- R N Iyengar's profile at Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE, New Delhi
- R N Iyengar's profile at The Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore
- R N Iyengar's entry the National Academy of Sciences, India
- R N Iyengar on Scribd
- SADHANA - Academy Proceedings in Engineering Sciences