A computer science doctoral student at the Indiana University School of Informatics has been awarded the Paul W Purdom Fellowship in Informatics
George HL Fletcher is the first recipient of the $25,000 fellowship made possible through the Chin-Cheng Wu Foundation for Peace and Humanity.
Fletcher focuses his research on database systems.
The fellowship is awarded annually to a graduate student in informatics or computer science, particularly to a person having an interest in researching algorithms and their application.
"This is a tremendous honor and I am excited to receive this fellowship," says Fletcher, who earned his undergraduate degree at the University of North Florida at Jacksonville.
"It will definitely assist me in achieving my academic goals and in advancing my scientific career".
Chin-Cheng Wu, the founder and chairman of Acopia Networks, earned a master's in computer science at IU in 1977.
The fellowship was established late last year in honor of Paul W Purdom, professor and former chair of the Department of Computer Science.
Purdom, an expert in algorithmic applications and computational biology, has been on the IU faculty since 1971.
"Professor Purdom taught me how to think pragmatically when it comes to problem-solving," Wu said in an earlier interview.
"To me, real life problems are never 100 percent simulated or modeled.
"Dr Purdom always has focused on research of algorithmic constraints that have profound impacts and results.
To me, that is an absolutely essential step in putting theoretical discovery into practical uses."
