Work has demonstrated how modeling biological processes in the brain can be used to solve complex computational problems PISCATAWAY, N.J. (3 June 2009) — John J. Hopfield, a researcher whose focus on combining neurobiology, physics and electrical engineering bridged the gap between biological processes and computer technology, is being honored by IEEE with the 2009 Frank Rosenblatt Award. IEEE is the world's leading professional association for the advancement of technology.
The award, sponsored by the IEEE Computational Intelligence Society, recognizes Hopfield for seminal contributions to the understanding of information processing in biological systems. The award will be presented on 17 June 2009 at the IEEE-INNS International Joint Conference on Neural Network in Atlanta, Georgia.
The beginning of the modern era of neural networks can be traced to Hopfield's pioneering work in the early 1980s. Relating an understanding of the electrical and cellular activity that takes place in the brain to computer technology, Hopfield described a feedback network of highly interconnected neurons that could reconstruct memories from clues (associative memory) and showed how stable states of network activity could represent memories, emphasizing the importance of computers (and the brain) as dynamical systems. This "Hopfield Network" is a recurrent neural network that can act as robust associative memory to perform pattern completion tasks. His work ignited an engineering revolution by showing that biologically inspired computation was feasible.
Today, a large portion of all studies concerning neural circuits are based on Hopfield's concepts. The idea of using neural networks to solve complex problems can be seen in applications such as system identification and control in vehicles; game playing and decision making; pattern recognition for radar systems and face identification; speech and handwriting recognition; medical diagnosis and financial applications such as automated trading systems. Beyond the benefit to computing technology, Hopfield's work also serves as a basic paradigm in neuroscience for understanding how the brain carries out its tasks.
Hopfield is a Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Physical Society (of which he was president in 2006). He has written over 200 research papers and has received many awards, including the Dirac Medal from the International Center for Theoretical Physics, California Scientist of the Year, a MacArthur Prize and the Einstein Prize of the World Cultural Council. Hopfield graduated from Swarthmore College, Pennsylvania, and received a doctorate in physics from Cornell University, Ithaca, New York. He is currently the Howard Prior Professor of Molecular Engineering at Princeton University, New Jersey. About IEEE
IEEE, the world*s largest technical professional society, is commemorating its 125th anniversary in 2009 by Celebrating 125 Years of Engineering the Future around the globe. Through its more than 375,000 members in 160 countries, IEEE is a leading authority on a wide variety of areas ranging from aerospace systems, computers and telecommunications to biomedical engineering, electric power and consumer electronics. Dedicated to the advancement of technology, IEEE publishes 30 percent of the world*s literature in the electrical and electronics engineering and computer science fields, and has developed nearly 900 active industry standards. The organization annually sponsors more than 900 conferences worldwide. Additional information about IEEE can be found at http://www.ieee.org.
