Pravin Varaiya

{{Short description|American control theorist (1940–2022)}}

{{use dmy dates|date=February 2020}}

{{Infobox scientist

| name = Pravin Varaiya

| birth_date = {{birth date|df=yes|1940|10|29}}{{Cite web |date=2022-04-21 |title=First-Hand:IEEE Award Recipient Series:Pravin Varaiya |url=https://ethw.org/First-Hand:IEEE_Award_Recipient_Series:Pravin_Varaiya |access-date=2022-10-08 |website=ETHW |language=en}}

| birth_place = Bombay, India

| death_date = {{death date|df=yes|2022|06|10}} (aged 82)

| death_place =

| workplaces = University of California, Berkeley

| alma_mater =

| education = University of Mumbai
University of California, Berkeley

| thesis_title = Nonlinear Programming and Optimal Control

| thesis_year = 1966

| thesis_url = http://oskicat.berkeley.edu/record=b14300392~S1

| doctoral_advisor = Lotfi A. Zadeh

| doctoral_students = Jean Walrand
Mark H. A. Davis
Andrea Goldsmith
Steven H. Low
Vivek Borkar
Mustafa Ergen

| website = {{URL|http://paleale.eecs.berkeley.edu/~varaiya/}}

}}

Pravin Pratap Varaiya (29 October 1940 – 10 June 2022) was Nortel Networks Distinguished Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley.[http://paleale.eecs.berkeley.edu/~varaiya/ EECS Berkeley] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110407130813/http://paleale.eecs.berkeley.edu/~varaiya/ |date=7 April 2011}}

Varaiya received his B.Sc. from University of Bombay and his Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering in 1963 from University of California, Berkeley.

Varaiya has worked in the areas of control, communication networks and transportation systems. He is the author of High-Performance Communication Networks (with Jean Walrand and Andrea Goldsmith) (2nd edn., Morgan-Kaufmann, 2000).

In 1980, Varaiya became a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).{{cite web|url=http://www.ieee.org/membership_services/membership/fellows/chronology/fellows_1980.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100413072808/http://www.ieee.org/membership_services/membership/fellows/chronology/fellows_1980.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=13 April 2010 |title=Fellow Class of 1980 |publisher=IEEE |accessdate=4 April 2011}} In 1999, he was elected to membership of the National Academy of Engineering{{cite web|url=http://www.nae.edu/MembersSection/Directory20412/28426.aspx |title=NAE Members Directory - Dr. Pravin P. Varaiya |publisher=NAE |accessdate=5 April 2011}} and in 2006 he became Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.{{cite web|title=Book of Members, 1780-2010: Chapter V|url=http://www.amacad.org/publications/BookofMembers/ChapterV.pdf|publisher=American Academy of Arts and Sciences|accessdate=5 April 2011}} In 2002, he received the IEEE Control Systems Award, "for outstanding contributions to stochastic and adaptive control and the unification of concepts from control and computer science".{{cite web|url=http://www.ieee.org/documents/control_sys_rl.pdf |title=IEEE Control Systems Award Recipients |publisher=IEEE |accessdate=5 April 2011}}
- {{cite web |url=http://www.ieeecss.org/main/awards/control-systems-field-award |title=IEEE Control Systems Award |publisher=IEEE Control Systems Society |accessdate=5 April 2011 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20101229173014/http://www.ieeecss.org/main/awards/control-systems-field-award |archivedate=29 December 2010 }} In 2008, he received the Richard E. Bellman Control Heritage Award from the American Automatic Control Council, "for pioneering contributions to stochastic control, hybrid systems and the unification of theories of control and computation".{{cite web|url=http://a2c2.org/awards/richard-e-bellman-control-heritage-award |title=Richard E. Bellman Control Heritage Award |publisher=American Automatic Control Council |accessdate=10 February 2013}}

Varaiya was ranked within the top 100 scientists in the world in the field of Engineering and Technology.{{Cite web |title=Research.com - Leading Academic Research Portal |url=https://research.com/scientists-rankings/electronics-and-electrical-engineering |access-date=2022-03-30 |website=Research.com |language=en}}

Varaiya died on 10 June 2022, due to injuries sustained when he was hit by a truck while out walking in April of that year.{{cite web |last1=Crowley |first1=Magdalene L. |date=13 June 2022 |title=EECS Prof. Pravin Varaiya has died |url=https://eecs.berkeley.edu/news/2022/06/eecs-prof-pravin-varaiya-has-died |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705222432/https://eecs.berkeley.edu/news/2022/06/pravin-varaiya-has-died |archive-date=5 July 2022 |access-date=14 June 2022 |website=eecs.berkeley.edu}}