Systems Engineer, Innovation Expert Share Menneken Award for Scientific Research
Today@NPS
Systems Engineer, Innovation Expert Share Menneken Award for Scientific Research
By Kenneth A. Stewart
NPS Department of Systems Engineering Associate Professor Timothy Chung is one of two NPS faculty honored with the revamped Menneken Award for Highly Meritorious Research. In a departure from past years, the NPS Foundation-led award selection committee selected two faculty for the award. Chung shares the honor with Graduate School of Business and Public Policy (GSBPP) Associate Professor Nicholas Dew.
Chung's Menneken Award comes on the heels of his successes in the field of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) swarms. He and his colleagues at Advanced Robotics Systems Engineering Laboratory flew a record breaking 50 autonomous UAVs at Camp Roberts last August.
"It is an honor to receive this Menneken Award, which highlights the collective achievement of a talented and inspiring team," said Chung. "This recognition serves to remind us that innovation is born of conversation and collaboration. With this tenet in mind, I intend to continue these various research initiatives in the future through active engagements across students, faculty, warfighters, and the fleet."
Dew, who shared the award with Chung, is also an advocate for innovation.
"I was delighted to receive this award. Traditionally, it has been given to faculty with expertise in the areas of science and technology. It's wonderful to see it awarded to a researcher in the social sciences and I hope other social scientists will be honored with it in the future," said Dew.
For Dew, the social sciences are a critical component of the Navy's future success, especially as it attempts to incorporate new technologies throughout the fleet.
"[In many instances] the technology is already there. The problem is getting people to adopt it. That's a social science problem. Social scientists are important to the Navy as it attempts to move forward," Dew Explained.
The Menneken awards were established in the memory of distinguished Professor Carl E. Menneken who served as NPS Dean of Research from 1962-1972. Funding for the awards is provided from a bequest to the NPS Foundation by his wife Jesse W. Menneken.