November 06, 2006 —
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Kyriakakis : "a great honor ... particularly because it is decided on by a group of peers."
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USC Viterbi School of Engineering's Chris Kyriakakis is the winner of the 2006 World Technology Award in media and journalism from the
World Technology Network.
Kyriakakis is an associate professor in the
Viterbi School's Ming Hsieh Department of Electrical Engineering; deputy director of the School's
Integrated Media Systems Center (IMSC), a National Science Foundation Engineering Research Center; and co-founder and CTO of
Audyssey Laboratories.
"It is a great honor to receive this award, particularly because it is decided on by a group of peers," said Kyriakakis, whose research over the past 10 years has focused on novel algorithms for capturing and rendering multichannel sound to create "immersive" environments that are audibly indistinguishable from live performances.
He pioneered the development of virtual microphones to synthesize acoustical signals that can convert mono or stereo recordings to multichannel versions. His group also developed methods for fixing the acoustical problems in rooms and cars for a large listening area.
As Chief Technology Officer/Founder of Audyssey Laboratories, Inc. he has created a technology called Audyssey MultEQ that is now being used by several major consumer electronics companies.
The World Technology Awards honor individuals and corporations from 20 technology-related sectors viewed by their peers as being the most innovative and doing the work of the greatest likely long-term significance. Award categories range from biotechnology, space and energy through ethics, design and entertainment. The World Technology Network announced Kyriakakis' and his fellow winners' honors in association with the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), Dow Chemical, TIME magazine and CNN, among others.
Previous winners of the WTN media and journalism award include John Markoff of
The New York Times, Dan Gillmor of the
San Jose Mercury-News, Krishna Bharat of Google, Walter Mossberg of the
Wall Street Journal, and, Kyriakakis' IMSC colleague, director Adam Clayton Powell III.
Nominees for the 2006 Awards were identified in an intensive, global process over a period of many months in which current individual WTN members (primarily elected WTN Fellows from previous Awards cycles), who now number over 800, spread out over 60 countries) nominated peers doing the innovative work in their field of the greatest likely long-term significance. After receiving more information about nominees, WTN individual members then vote on their preferences within their category.
“The World Technology Awards program is not only a very inspiring way to identify and honor the most innovative people and organizations in the technology world, but it also is a truly disciplined way for the WTN membership to identify those who will formally join them, as WTN Fellows, as part of our global community,” added James P. Clark, founder and chairman of the World Technology Network. “By working to make useful connections among our members, we look forward to assisting Professor Kyriakakis continue to help create our collective future and change our world."
About World Technology Network. The World Technology Network is a New York-headquartered organization that was created to "encourage serendipity" — happy accidents — amongst those individuals and companies deemed by their peers to be the most innovative in the science and technology world. The WTN's areas of interest range from IT and communications to biotech, energy, materials, space, as well as related fields such as finance, marketing, policy, law, design, and ethics. Each year, WTN members are brought together through an ongoing global series of regional roundtables, global summits, and other events. The WTN also convened the World Energy Technologies Summit at UNESCO headquarters in Paris. The WTN also publishes "The WTN Update”, a monthly collection of news items covering the innovative work of the WTN members. The central events in the WTN calendar include the annual World Technology Summit and World Technology Awards — the culmination of a global judging program through which new members are nominated and selected and by which the network grows and is refreshed.
