Umran Savas Inan : An Oral History
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Umran Inan, Professor Emeritus in Stanford’s Department of Electrical Engineering and the past president of Koç University, recalls his education in Turkey, his PhD studies at Stanford in the Radioscience Lab in the 1970s, and his faculty career and directorship of the STAR Lab (Space, Telecommunications, and Radioscience Laboratory). In addition to describing change over time in the Department of Electrical Engineering, Inan provides highlights from his research career, including his lab’s work on lightning sprites and elves, his field work in Antarctica, and the fruitful contributions of the large cadre of graduate students he supervised. He explains his decision to return to Turkey to become the president of Koç University in 2009 and the successful academic environment he created there, and he offers reflections on Stanford’s academic culture of excellence and the trend toward the internationalization of higher education in the United States.
- Summary
- Part 1 [00:00:00 – 00:32:33] Early life in Erzincan, Istanbul, and Ankara, Turkey • High value parents placed on education • Middle school and high school education at Ankara College • Early interest in chemistry and becoming an academician • Switching career path to electrical engineering at time of university entrance examinations • Middle Eastern Technical University and strength of course offerings and facilities there • First exposure to computer programming [00:32:34 – 01:06:35] Learning about Stanford from its bright red catalog in the library • Decision to attend Stanford due to reputation of Owen Garriott, a Stanford professor and Skylab astronaut • Radioscience Lab at Stanford in the 1970s, including Robert Helliwell • Move of Electrical Engineering Department away from basic science and toward practical technology applications relevant to Silicon Valley • Fieldwork, including experiment to test the amplification of signals along magnetic lines • Teaching as PhD student and post-doc [01:06:36 – 01:41:33] A brief return to Turkey and an opportunity to join the faculty in the Department of Electrical Engineering at Stanford • An aging radioscience faculty and threats to close the lab • Transition of Radioscience Lab to STAR Lab – Space, Telecommunications, and Radioscience Lab • Advantage of space-oriented research being situated in Electrical Engineering, rather than Physics: plentiful access to excellent graduate students • Path of many of his graduate students to the aerospace industry • Memories of research trips to Antarctica Part 2 [00:00:00 – 00:30:52] Memories of Stanford’s international student community and Bechtel International Center in the 1970s • Research career highlights: discovery of and research on lightning sprites and elves • Recruiting graduate students with strong physics background from the Soviet Union / Russia, including Alexandr Draganov and Yuri Taranenko • Discovering the cause of sprites with one of his students • Reflections and examples of the cumulative nature of science, including a recent experimental validation of his thesis work and research on impact of lightning discharges on radiation belts [00:30:53 – 00:59:26] Thoughts on curiosity-driven research versus agency priority areas • Bureaucratic nature of National Science Foundation compared to Office of Naval Research and other agencies • Space, Telecommunications, and Radioscience Laboratory • Reflections on R&D, and his bias toward “research” over “development” • Work with National Semiconductor on chips for use in measurements in Antarctica • Stanford policy of not allowing research associates to act as primary investigators (PIs) • Textbooks on electromagnetism and plasma physics • Developing ultra-low power and miniaturized radio receivers for CubeSat satellites [00:59:27 – 01:33:55] Decision to accept the presidency of Koç University in Turkey • Reflections on leading Koç University and the impact and success of his work • Leaving Stanford and winding down of his research group • Transitioning to president emeritus of Koç University • Stanford connections to Koç University, including service of Philip Pizzo and Gerhard Casper on board of overseers • Thoughts on strategic plans [01:33:56 – 01:53:53] Explanation of relationship of Koç University with the Turkish government • Reflections on Stanford as a place where “you can become anything you deserve” • Thoughts on the internationalization of Stanford and higher education in the United States • Creating an environment at Koç University for PhDs to return to Turkey • Costs of higher education and model of financing one’s own research group • Story of Inan’s chance to go to space in the 1980s
Description
| Type of resource | text |
|---|---|
| Extent | 1 text file |
| Place | Stanford (Calif.) |
| Publisher | Stanford Historical Society |
| Date created | November 14, 2021 - 2021-12-04 |
| Language | English |
| Digital origin | born digital |
Creators/Contributors
| Interviewee | Inan, Umran S. | |
|---|---|---|
| Creator | Inan, Umran S. | |
| Interviewer | Fikes, Richard E. | |
| Publisher | Stanford Historical Society |
Subjects
| Subject | Inan, Umran S. |
|---|---|
| Subject | Stanford University. Department of Electrical Engineering |
| Subject | Koç Üniversitesi |
| Subject | Space, Telecommunications, and Radioscience Laboratory |
| Genre | Interview |
Bibliographic information
| Biographical Profile | Umran S. Inan received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Electrical Engineering from Middle East Technical University, Ankara, Turkey, in 1972 and 1973, respectively, and the PhD degree in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University in 1977. Professor Inan served as the president of Koç University in Istanbul, Turkey, from 2009 to 2021. From 1982 to 2009, he served at Stanford University on the faculty of the Department of Electrical Engineering and as director of the Space, Telecommunications, and Radioscience Laboratory (STAR Lab). He has authored more than 366 scientific publications with 11,800 citations (h-index=58), and served as the principal advisor for sixty PhD students since 1990.He is a fellow of the American Geophysical Union, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IEEE) and the American Physical Society (APS). He has served as vice president of the International Union of Radio Science (URSI). He is the recipient of the 2007 Stanford University Allan V. Cox Medal for Faculty Excellence; the 1998 Stanford University Tau Beta Pi Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching; several Group Achievement Awards from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the European Space Agency; the Antarctic Service Medal of the U.S., with an Antarctic Mountain named “Inan Peak” in his honor; and the 2008 Appleton Prize from URSI and the Royal Society. He received the 2010 Special Science Award from the Scientific and Technological Research Council (TUBITAK) of Turkey, and he is an elected member of the Turkish Academy of Sciences (TUBA). |
|---|---|
| Audio |
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| Finding Aid | |
| Location | https://purl.stanford.edu/wt706fs7420 |
| Location | SC0932 |
| Repository | Stanford University. Libraries. Department of Special Collections and University Archives |
Access conditions
- Use and reproduction
- The materials are open for research use and may be used freely for non-commercial purposes with an attribution. For commercial permission requests, please contact the Stanford University Archives (universityarchives@stanford.edu).
- Copyright
- Copyright © The Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University. All rights reserved.
Collection
Stanford Historical Society Oral History Program interviews, 1999-2022
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