Richard A. Tapia
Encyclopedia
Richard Alfred Tapia is a renowned American
mathematician and champion of under-represented minorities in the sciences. In recognition of his broad contributions, in 2005, Tapia was named "University Professor" at Rice University
in Houston, Texas
, the University's highest academic title. The honor has been bestowed on only six professors in the Rice's ninety-four year history. On September 28th, 2011, President Barack Obama
announced that Tapia was among twelve scientists to be awarded the National Medal of Science
, the top award the United States
offers its researchers. Tapia is currently the Maxfield and Oshman Professor of Engineering; Associate Director of Graduate Studies, Office of Research and Graduate Studies; and Director of the Center for Excellence and Equity in Education at Rice University.
Tapia's mathematical research is focused on mathematical optimization
and iterative method
s for nonlinear
problems. His current research is in the area of algorithm
s for constrained
optimization and interior point method
s for linear
and nonlinear programming.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
mathematician and champion of under-represented minorities in the sciences. In recognition of his broad contributions, in 2005, Tapia was named "University Professor" at Rice University
Rice University
William Marsh Rice University, commonly referred to as Rice University or Rice, is a private research university located on a heavily wooded campus in Houston, Texas, United States...
in Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
, the University's highest academic title. The honor has been bestowed on only six professors in the Rice's ninety-four year history. On September 28th, 2011, President Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
announced that Tapia was among twelve scientists to be awarded the National Medal of Science
National Medal of Science
The National Medal of Science is an honor bestowed by the President of the United States to individuals in science and engineering who have made important contributions to the advancement of knowledge in the fields of behavioral and social sciences, biology, chemistry, engineering, mathematics and...
, the top award the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
offers its researchers. Tapia is currently the Maxfield and Oshman Professor of Engineering; Associate Director of Graduate Studies, Office of Research and Graduate Studies; and Director of the Center for Excellence and Equity in Education at Rice University.
Tapia's mathematical research is focused on mathematical optimization
Optimization (mathematics)
In mathematics, computational science, or management science, mathematical optimization refers to the selection of a best element from some set of available alternatives....
and iterative method
Iterative method
In computational mathematics, an iterative method is a mathematical procedure that generates a sequence of improving approximate solutions for a class of problems. A specific implementation of an iterative method, including the termination criteria, is an algorithm of the iterative method...
s for nonlinear
Nonlinearity
In mathematics, a nonlinear system is one that does not satisfy the superposition principle, or one whose output is not directly proportional to its input; a linear system fulfills these conditions. In other words, a nonlinear system is any problem where the variable to be solved for cannot be...
problems. His current research is in the area of algorithm
Algorithm
In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm is an effective method expressed as a finite list of well-defined instructions for calculating a function. Algorithms are used for calculation, data processing, and automated reasoning...
s for constrained
Constraint (mathematics)
In mathematics, a constraint is a condition that a solution to an optimization problem must satisfy. There are two types of constraints: equality constraints and inequality constraints...
optimization and interior point method
Interior point method
Interior point methods are a certain class of algorithms to solve linear and nonlinear convex optimization problems.The interior point method was invented by John von Neumann...
s for linear
Linear programming
Linear programming is a mathematical method for determining a way to achieve the best outcome in a given mathematical model for some list of requirements represented as linear relationships...
and nonlinear programming.
Education
- Ph.D., University of California, Los AngelesUniversity of California, Los AngelesThe University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
, 1967 (Mathematics)- Dissertation: "A Generalization of Newton's MethodNewton's methodIn numerical analysis, Newton's method , named after Isaac Newton and Joseph Raphson, is a method for finding successively better approximations to the roots of a real-valued function. The algorithm is first in the class of Householder's methods, succeeded by Halley's method...
with an Application to the Euler-Lagrange EquationEuler-Lagrange equationIn calculus of variations, the Euler–Lagrange equation, Euler's equation, or Lagrange's equation, is a differential equation whose solutions are the functions for which a given functional is stationary...
" - Advisors: Magnus HestenesMagnus HestenesMagnus Rudolph Hestenes was an American mathematician. Together with Cornelius Lanczos and Eduard Stiefel, he invented the conjugate gradient method....
, Charles Tompkins
- Dissertation: "A Generalization of Newton's Method
- M.A., University of California, Los Angeles, 1966 (Mathematics)
- B.A., University of California, Los Angeles, 1961 (Mathematics)
University positions
- 2005–present: University Professor, Rice University
- 2005–present: Maxfield and Oshman Professor of Engineering, Rice University
- 2000–present: Adjunct Professor, College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, University of Houston
- 1999–present: Director, Center for Excellence and Equity in Education, Rice University
- 1991 - 2005: Noah Harding Professor of Computational and Applied Mathematics, Rice University
- 1989–present: Associate Director of Graduate Studies, Office of Research and Graduate Studies, Rice University
- 1989 - 2000:Director of Education and Outreach Programs, Center for Research on Parallel Computation, Rice University
- 1986 - 1988: Lecturer, Department of Community Medicine, Baylor College of MedicineBaylor College of MedicineBaylor College of Medicine, located in the Texas Medical Center in Houston, Texas, USA, is a highly regarded medical school and leading center for biomedical research and clinical care...
- 1978 - 1983: Adjunct Professor, T.I.R.R., (then called the Texas Institute for Rehabilitation and Research) Baylor College of Medicine
- 1978 - 1983: Chair, Department of Mathematical Sciences, Rice University
- 1976–present: Professor of Mathematical Sciences, Rice University
- 1972 - 1976: Associate Professor of Mathematical Sciences, Rice University
- 1970 - 1972: Assistant Professor of Mathematical Sciences, Rice University
- 1968 - 1970: Assistant Professor, Mathematics Research Center, University of Wisconsin–MadisonUniversity of Wisconsin–MadisonThe University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
Honors and awards (selected)
- Hispanic Heritage Award in Math and ScienceHispanic Heritage FoundationThe Hispanic Heritage Foundation is a non-profit organization operating out of Reston, Virginia that works to increase the number of Latina and Latino leaders in society...
, September 2009. - Society for Industrial and Applied MathematicsSociety for Industrial and Applied MathematicsThe Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics was founded by a small group of mathematicians from academia and industry who met in Philadelphia in 1951 to start an organization whose members would meet periodically to exchange ideas about the uses of mathematics in industry. This meeting led...
(SIAM) Prize for Distinguished Service to the Profession, Portland OR, July 2004. - Community Service Award, University of California Los Angeles Alumni Association, Los Angeles, California, May 2004.
- Hispanic Engineer & Information Technology Magazine, "One of the 50 Most Important Hispanics in Technology and Business" April 2004.
- Distinguished Public Service Award, American Mathematical SocietyAmerican Mathematical SocietyThe American Mathematical Society is an association of professional mathematicians dedicated to the interests of mathematical research and scholarship, which it does with various publications and conferences as well as annual monetary awards and prizes to mathematicians.The society is one of the...
, Phoenix, Arizona, January 2004. - Texas Science Hall of Fame Inductee, Institute of Texan Cultures, University of Texas, San Antonio, Texas, January 2002.
- Reginald H. Jones Distinguished Service Award, NACME, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland, October 2001.
- Distinguished Scientist Award, Society for the Advancement of Hispanics/Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS) National Conference, Atlanta, Georgia, October 2000.
- 1999 Giants in Science Award, Quality Education for Minorities (QEM) Network, Washington, DC, February 1999.
- 1997 Lifetime Mentor Award, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, February 1998.
- Recipient of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring, National Science FoundationNational Science FoundationThe National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
, Washington, DC, September 1996. - Appointed to the National Science BoardNational Science BoardThe National Science Board of the United States is composed of 25 members appointed by the President and confirmed by the United States Senate, representing the broad U.S. science and engineering community. The Board establishes the policies of the National Science Foundation within the framework...
by President ClintonBill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, August 1996. - National Academy of EngineeringNational Academy of EngineeringThe National Academy of Engineering is a government-created non-profit institution in the United States, that was founded in 1964 under the same congressional act that led to the founding of the National Academy of Sciences...
, February 1992. - Was chosen to have a "Celebration of Diversity in Computing" conference named after him (usually held biannually )
External links
- "Tapia Video Biography", The Department of Computational and Applied Mathematics at Rice University.
- "Tapia promoted to University Professor", Rice University News Release.