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October 10, 2005 Vol.
77, no. 7F
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| IEOR professor Shmuel S. Oren is
also the Berkeley site director of PSERC, Power Systems Research
Center, a multi-university center sponsored by the National Science
Foundation and industry members. Oren holds B.Sc and M.Sc degrees
in mechanical engineering from the Technion in Israel and M.S.
and Ph.D. degrees in engineering economic systems from Stanford.
His work focuses on market engineering, which uses price and incentive
mechanisms for coordination of decentralized complex systems.
(Photo Credit: Peg Skorpinski)
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Professor
Minute with IEOR professor Shmuel Oren
What first inspired
you to go into engineering?
As far as I can remember, I liked to tinker with things and take them
apart, so I chose to go to a vocational high school that was affiliated
with the Technion (Israel Institute of Technology). We spent half a
day in the shop and half in academic studies. When I graduated,
I was certified as a machine shop operator so it was natural for me
to continue school at the Technion as an ME major.
If you could teach any course, what would it be?
Next fall, my Ph.D. student Ramteen Sioshansi and I will teach a new
undergraduate course in market engineering. This is my ‘dream
course’ since it will bring together my favorite subjects: economics,
optimization, and engineering principles. The course will teach how
to design markets, auctions, or any other system that is controlled
through the economic behavior of human agents.
Whom do you most admire?
One of my role models is Alan Greenspan. He is so articulate and able
to influence national and world policies on the basis of fundamental
economic principles, without compromising scholarly standards.
What movie should every student see?
I think that every student and every human being should see “Schindler’s
List.” First, it shows the horrible consequences of war and hate,
which we must never forget. But more importantly, it shows that you
do not have to be religious, altruistic, or heroic to do good deeds.
Being a good human being is consistent with rational and selfish behavior.
If you would like us
to feature your favorite professor, please e-mail his or her name to
engnews@coe.berkeley.edu.
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