Do the Math and Find the Model

Do the Math and Find the Model

computing

After fleeing Iran, Vahid Tarokh uses his “extraordinary mind” to explore connections

Duke engineer Vahid Tarokh is fascinated by insects' ability to change direction in an instant, zipping forward, then up, then hovering. The Rhodes Family Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering seeks to model their flight, which could lead to multimodal airplanes that could maneuver in a tight space or flying robots that could reach trapped miners.

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Do the Math and Find the Model | Duke Mag
It's hard to keep up with Vahid Tarokh at a whiteboard. Not his writing, but his mind. “You need to be well rested and maybe have a cup of coffee nearby,” says University of Michigan professor of engineering Alfred Hero. “His ideas are coming one after the other, just spraying out. For mere mortals like myself, it takes at least a few minutes to understand what he's saying, and then you realize there's a very interesting direction, even a Ph.D. thesis, behind this suggestion.”
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