DGIST Appoints Seven Distinguished Professors Fostering an Environment for World-Class Education and Research Achievements

Expectations for Global Advancement through Distinguished Professorship Program

□ DGIST (President Kunwoo Lee) has launched the Distinguished Professorship program to provide exceptional faculty with an environment dedicated to education and research, aiming to achieve world-class results.

 

□ The Distinguished Professorship program selects renowned scholars with outstanding research achievements or highly promising faculty with equivalent qualifications among established and early-career scholars at DGIST. This initiative was first implemented in September of this year.

 

□ A total of seven distinguished professors have been appointed this September. Among them, Professor Seo Dae-ha from the Department of Chemical Physics is recognized for pioneering research in the dynamics of membrane proteins through interdisciplinary studies in chemistry, biophysics, and data science. He has published numerous papers in top-tier journals, such as JACS, Chem, and Nano Letters, and has been acknowledged with the POSCO Cheongam Science Fellowship and the Young Inorganic Chemist Award from the Korean Chemical Society.

 

□ Professor Kim Ye-seong from the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science is at the forefront of AI optimization research, exploring lightweight machine learning technologies inspired by the brain in the field of hyperdimensional computing. During his tenure, he has published 36 papers in prestigious international journals and led seven significant research projects, earning academic recognition for his outstanding contributions.

 

□ Professor Lim Seong-hoon, also from the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, has published over 40 papers, including four in the top 1% of international journals. He has successfully secured a research project worth 5 billion KRW as the principal investigator and has filed and registered multiple patents domestically and internationally, contributing to a variety of research outcomes.

 

□ Professor Jang Kyung-in from the Department of Robotics and Mechatronics has achieved remarkable research outcomes in next-generation biomedical engineering, publishing papers in prestigious journals, such as Nature Biomedical Engineering, Science Advances, and Nature Communications. He received the Minister of Science and ICT Award at NANOKOREA 2024 and secured over 36 billion KRW in funding for national projects. Through international collaborations with peers in Harvard University and MIT, he has significantly contributed to DGIST’s global initiatives and fostered practical industrialization through faculty-led startups.

 

□ Professor Choi Jong-min from the Department of Energy Engineering has published a total of 30 papers, including 21 as corresponding author in top-tier journals in the energy field, such as Energy & Environmental Science, Advanced Materials, Advanced Energy Materials, and ACS Energy Letters. He has been recognized as a POSCO Cheongam Foundation Science Fellow and has received multiple awards from various academic societies and foundations, including the Young Researcher Award from the Korean Polymer Society.

 

□ Professor Yoo Seong-woon from the Department of Brain Science has focused on the interactions between neural stem cells and brain immune cells in the context of degenerative brain diseases and mental health disorders. He has published several top-ranked papers in major journals, including Nature Communications and Autophagy. Notably, his research has produced seven registered patents, including a tripartite patent application. He is also actively involved in developing new therapies for brain diseases based on novel mechanisms through industry consulting and collaborative research. He plays a vital leadership role in various organizations, contributing to the advancement of academia and institutions, including the Korean Society for Brain and Neural Sciences.

 

□ Professor Kwak Jun-myung from the Department of New Biology studies the intricacies of cellular activities in plant development. Since relocating from the University of Maryland College Park to DGIST in 2014, he has published 21 papers in esteemed journals, such as Cell, Nature Plants, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and Cell Reports. His research has garnered over 15,400 citations, and he has received multiple accolades, including the Cargill-Hanlim Life Sciences Award, the Scientist of the Month Award, and recognition among the Top 100 Outstanding Research and Development Achievements. Additionally, many of his former students have been appointed as professors at leading universities, significantly contributing to education and academic advancement.

 

□ DGIST President Lee Gun-woo stated, “Thanks to the support of various organizations, including the Sindoh Foundation and Korea Fuel-Tech Corp., we have been able to establish the Distinguished Professorship program, allowing outstanding faculty members to dedicate themselves to education and research.” He emphasized that “this program will create an environment where faculty can focus on academic achievements while enhancing morale and motivation. We plan to appoint additional distinguished faculty members in the future to further strengthen the institution’s research and educational capabilities, ensuring that DGIST continues to produce world-class results through multifaceted efforts.”  

Published: 04 Oct 2024

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