The EECS emeritus professor is recognized for groundbreaking contributions in information and coding theory.
Robert G. Gallager, emeritus professor of electrical engineering and computer science, at the Japan Prize Foundation press conference on Feb. 4, 2020. Recognized for contributions to coding and information theory, Gallager is one of two 2020 Japan Prize Laureates.
Photo Courtesy of the Japan Prize Foundation
Robert G. Gallager, an emeritus professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS), has been named as a 2020 Japan Prize Laureate.
Gallager, who was honored in the "Electronics, Information, Communication" prize field, was recognized for "pioneering contributions to information and coding theory," according to an announcement from the Secretariat of the Japan Prize Selection Committee.
The Japan Prize "honors individuals whose original and outstanding achievements in science and technology are recognized as having advanced the frontiers of knowledge and served the cause of peace and prosperity for mankind," according to the Tokyo-based Japan Prize Foundation, which administers the award. Gallager and this year's other laureate, Svante Paabo, director of the Department of Evolutionary Genetics at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany, will be honored at a ceremony at the National Theatre of Japan in Tokyo on April. 14.
Gallager was recognized for inventing low-density parity-check (LDPC) codes, which can achieve coding efficiency very close to its theoretical limit, known as the Shannon-limit. "His invention was crucial in enabling error-free communication over noisy communication channels and led to the realization of today's highly reliable high-speed and large-capacity communication," according to the announcement.
The foundation noted that while Gallager first proposed LDPC codes in the 1960s, "his ideas were not adopted for the next 30 years, partially due to the difficulties of its practical implementations." That limitation changed with rapid improvements in computer-processing capability during the 1990s. Since the early 2000s, LDPC codes have been widely adopted in digital communication and storage systems, the foundation noted: "It has become an extremely important basic technology that supports our modern digital society."
Speaking briefly at a Feb. 4 press conference in Tokyo, Gallager encouraged today's researchers to avoid becoming discouraged when their ideas aren't immediately fruitful. "Don't necessarily be upset at the idea that what you do is not useful, because perhaps it will be useful later," he said. "Do something which is novel and interesting, and which you hope will be useful in the future."
