Algorithms professor earns Denmark’s premier research honour
On January 23, 2015, Professor Mikkel Thorup of the University of Copenhagen’s Department of Computer Science received Denmark’s top honour for an individual researcher, the Villum Kann Rasmussen Annual Award for Technical and Scientific Research. The DKK 5 million award recognises Mikkel Thorup’s numerous international research breakthroughs. Thorup is one of the world’s preeminent experts in algorithms and data structures. He has also served as a research consultant with both Google and Microsoft.
Mikkel Thorup is a professor at the University of Copenhagen’s Department of Computer Science and head of the Centre for Efficient Algorithms and Data Systems (EADS).
“The award is fantastic because it puts me in a position to continue the work of trail-blazing in the field of algorithms. My ambition is to continue shaping new understandings and solutions that can provide us with a more secure and more effective use of computers and improved IT networks,” says Mikkel Thorup.
Background
Mikkel Thorup is an MSc and graduate of the Technical University of Denmark, with a doctoral degree from Oxford University. He has worked with top researchers at AT&T, the American telecommunications and research giant.
Mikkel Thorup has been a University of Copenhagen professor and centre head since 2013. He is a member of the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters, and the recipient of many prestigious honours including the MAA’s David P. Robbins Prize in mathematics. He is also a Fellow of the ACM and of AT&T.
Mikkel Thorup is an oft-cited researcher who has authored more than 170 scientific articles, as well as an esteemed presenter at major conferences in his field.
About the award
The Villum Kann Rasmussen Annual Award for Technical and Scientific Research is an annual award bestowed upon those researchers who have contributed unique breakthroughs in technical and scientific research. VILLUM FONDEN’s DKK 5 million award was inaugurated in 1987.
About VILLUM FONDEN
VILLUM FONDEN, a part of THE VELUX FOUNDATIONS, is a non-profit foundation that supports technical and scientific research, as well as environmental, social and cultural objectives in Denmark and internationally.
VILLUM FONDEN was created in 1971 by M.Eng. Villum Kann Rasmussen, developer of the VELUX roof window and founder of the VKR Group, of which VILLUM FONDEN is a majority shareholder .
Contact
-
Mikkel Thorup, mobile: +45 2117 9123 or e-mail: mthorup@di.ku.dk
-
Communications Officer Inge Hviid Jensen, mobile: +45 2875 1428 or e-mail: ihjensen@di.ku.dk
