Ray Kurzweil receives IEEE Eta Kappa Nu honor society’s top honor

November 30, 2014

(credit: IEEE)

Ray Kurzweil was presented with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Eta Kappa Nu honor society top honor, Eminent Member, at the 2014 IEEE Educational Activities Board Awards Ceremony. He received the honor for technical attainments and contributions to society through outstanding leadership in the profession of electrical and computer engineering.

The Induction and Awards presentation took place during the week of IEEE’s Meeting Series. Members of the IEEE Board of Directors and members of IEEE’s major boards and committees were in attendance.

About IEEE Eta Kappa Nu Eminent Member honor

IEEE Educational Activities Board honor society Eta Kappa Nu key. (credit: IEEE)

IEEE’s honor society Eta Kappa Nu established the Eminent Member recognition as the society’s highest membership classification. It is conferred on select few whose attainments and contributions to society through leadership in the fields of electrical and computer engineering have resulted in significant benefits to humankind.

Eta Kappa Nu established the Eminent Member recognition in 1950 as its highest distinction with the induction of Vannevar Bush, Vladimir Zworykin, and Royal Sorenson. Since 1950, only 134 individuals have been selected for the honor.

Previous honorees have included N.R. Narayana Murthy, Martin Cooper, Marican E. Hoff, Leonard Kleinrock, Steve Wozniak, Vinton G. Cerf, Gordon E. Moore, Gordon Bell, Abe M. Zarem, Jack Kilby, Andrew Viterbi, Bernard M. Gordon,  Amar G. Bose, Wilson Greatbatch, Leo L. Beranek, Gene Amdahl, William Hewlett, Jacob Rabinow, Harold E. Edgerton, Julius A. Stratton, Jerome B. Wiesner, Harry Nyquist, Vannevar Bush, Royal W. Sorensen, and Vladimir K. Zworykin.


Saurabh Sinha, PhD, Chair of the IEEE Educational Activities Board; Ray Kurzweil, IEEE Eta Kappa Nu “Eminent Member” honoree; Karen Panetta, PhD, Chair of the IEEE Education Activities Board and Recognition Committee; John Orr, PhD, President of Eta Kappa Nu, the IEEE Honor Society. (credit: IEEE)

About IEEE

The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers is the world’s largest professional association dedicated to advancing technological innovation and excellence for the benefit of humanity. IEEE and its members inspire a global community through IEEE’s cited publications, conferences, technology standards and professional and educational activities.

About IEEE awards

For over a century, the IEEE has sponsored various programs to honor achievements in education, industry, research and service. These awards each have a mission and criteria, and praise distinguished colleagues, dedicated teachers and corporate leaders who have had impact on humanity and technology.

About IEEE Educational Activities Board awards

IEEE Educational Activities Board awards recognize and honor individuals and companies for major contributions to engineering and technical education.

About IEEE Eta Kappa Nu honor society for electrical and computer engineering

IEEE Educational Activities Board Eta Kappa Nu student honor society is dedicated to encouraging and recognizing leadership potential and academic excellence in IEEE’s technical fields of interest.

IEEE Educational Activities Board honor society Eta Kappa Nu shield. (credit: IEEE)

The members consist of students, alumni, and other professionals who have demonstrated exceptional academic and professional accomplishments. Student members are selected on the basis of scholastic standing, character, and leadership. Professional members are inducted by nomination of a current member and by their contributions.

The founding principle of “identifying and recognizing future leaders” has resulted in a high concentration of IEEE Eta Kappa Nu alumni in top positions at major technical corporations in the world. Alumni have a higher level of advanced degrees, are frequently published and hold patents, found corporations, and hold academic leadership roles.

The vision of the founding members has been realized in the success of those who have accepted the responsibility of the Eta Kappa Nu designation.

Prominent members are: Larry Page, founder and CEO of Google; Eric Schmidt, Executive Chairman of Google; Sabeer Bhatia, founder of Hotmail; David Filo, founder of Yahoo!; Henry Samueli, founder and CEO of Broadcom; Irwin and Paul Jacobs, founders of Qualcomm; Amar Bose, founder and Chairman of Bose.

Through a variety of service programs and leadership training, student members develop lifelong skills for positions in industry and academia. Members are recognized as capable technically and professionally. The intention of the founding members was to recognize and prepare future leaders of the profession.

A scholastic honor society, IEEE Eta Kappa Nu has numerous award programs designed to promote and encourage educational excellence in electrical and computer engineering. The awards recognize outstanding accomplishments by students, professors and industry professionals who make significant contributions to society and who exemplify a balance of scholarship, service, leadership and character.


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Ray Kurzweil | IEEE lectures and awards

1984 | keynote, IEEE National Conference on Computer Design

1989 | keynote, IEEE National Conference on Artificial Intelligence Applications
“From the Mind’s Eye to the Marketplace”

2002 | lecture, IEEE Visualization
“Special Event Capstone”

2007 | lecture, IEEE International Professional Communication Conference
“Engineering the Future of Human Communication”

2008 | lecture, IEEE & Association of Computing Machinery
“Grand Challenges in Engineering for the 21st Century”

2013 | keynote, IEEE International Symposium on Technology & Society
“Early in the 21st Century, Intelligence Will Underlie Everything of Value”

2013 | keynote panel, IEEE International Symposium on Technology & Society
“The Society of Intelligent Veillance” — Ray Kurzweil; Marving Minsky, PhD; Steve Mann, PhD

2006 | award, IEEE Alfred N. Goldsmith Award for Distinguished Contributions to Engineering Communication


IEEE Eta Kappa Nu | Eminent Members

2013 | Susan L. Graham, Faqir Chand Kohli, N. R. Narayana Murthy, Martin Cooper
2012 | Marican E. Hoff, Jung Uck Seo
2011 | Leah H. Jamieson, Matt Ettus, Leonard Kleinrock
2010 | Steve Wozniak, Abraham Lempel, Vinton G. Cerf
2009 | Gerald Posakony, Eric Herz
2008 | William A. Wulf, H. Vincent Poor, Jose F. Valdez C.
2007 | Gordon E. Moore, Gordon Bell, James D. Meindl, Wallace S. Read
2006 | Abe M. Zarem, Jack Kilby, Harry W. Mergler, Tsuneo Nakahara, Andrew Viterbi
2005 | Joseph Bordogna, Owen K. Garriott, Bernard M. Gordon, Steven Sample
2004 | Henry Bachman, Walter Jeremiah Sanders, Arthur Stern
2003 | Donald R. Scifres, Irwin M. Jacobs, Jerome J. Suran
2002 | Amar G. Bose, J. Fred Bucy, Andrew Sage, Richard J. Gowen, Eberhardt Rechtin

2001 | Norman R. Augustine, Charles Concordia, Edward E. David, Jr., Roland W. Schmitt, Mischa Schwartz, John Brooks Slaughter, James L. Flanagan, Malcolm R. Currie, Donald O. Pederson, John R. Pierce

2000 | Robert A. Frosch, Wilson Greatbatch, Leo L. Beranek, George H. Heilmeier, John R. Whinnery, Thelma Estrin, Ivan A. Getting, Charles H. Townes

1999 | Gene Amdahl, William Hewlett, C. Lester Hogan, Jacob Rabinow
1998 | Nick Holonyak, Jr.
1993 | Berthold Sheffield, Robert W. Lucky
1987 | William E. Murray
1986 | Marcus Dodson
1985 | Donald Christiansen
1984 | Larry Dwon, Howard Sheppard, S. Reid Warren, Edward A. Erdelyi
1976 | Eric T. B. Gross
1974 | Edward C. Jordan
1970 | E. I. Kanouse
1969 | Emanuel R. Piore, Patrick E. Haggerty, Walker Lee Cisler
1968 | William H. Pickering, Harold E. Edgerton
1967 | George H. Brown
1966 | Simon Ramo, Winston E. Kock
1965 | Donald G. Fink
1964 | Lee A. Dubridge, Julius A. Stratton
1963 | Gordon S. Brown, William L. Everitt
1962 | John Bardeen, Lloyd V. Berkner, Edward M. Purcell, Jerome B. Wiesner, Ernst Weber
1961 | Arthur D. Moore, John L. Burns, James Hillier, Charles F. Wagner
1960 | Philip L. Alger, Chauncey Starr
1958 | Donald A. Quarles, C. F. Hood
1956 | William D. Coolidge, Harry Nyquist, Leon N. Brillouin, John Howard Dellinger, William B. Kouwenhoven

1955 | Ernst F. W. Alexanderson, Alfred N. Goldsmith, Harold S. Osborne, Harry A. Winne, John B. Whitehead, Harold H. Beverage, Leslie Newman McClellen

1954 | Walter R. G. Baker, Mervin J. Kelly, Reinhold Rudenberg, J. B. Black, A. A. Potter, Ellery B. Paine, Everett S. Lee
1953 | Edward C. Molina, Harold Pender, Charles A. Powel, Philip Sporn
1952 | Lee DeForest
1951 | Frederick E. Terman, Joseph Slepian, Karl B. McEachron, S. H. Mortenson, William H. Timbie
1950 | Vannevar Bush, Royal W. Sorensen, Vladimir K. Zworykin