John Burns, PhD

John Allen Burns
Hatcher Professor of Mathematics
Interdisciplinary Center for Applied Mathematics
Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA  24061-0531
Phone: (540) 231-7667, Fax: (540) 231-7079
burns@icam.vt.edu

John A. Burns is the Hatcher Professor of Mathematics at Virginia Tech and the Technical Director of the Interdisciplinary Center for Applied Mathematics.  He has published over 150 research papers on computational methods for identification, optimization and control of systems governed by partial and functional differential equations.  He has directed over twenty Ph.D. and ten MS students.  He has served on more than 12 editorial boards and he was the founding Editor of the SIAM Book Series on Advances in Design and Control.  He has served as Vice President of SIAM, is the past Chair of the SIAM Activity Group on Systems and Control and is a Fellow of the IEEE.  Dr. Burns’ primary interests concern the development of rigorous and practical computational algorithms for design and optimization of engineering and biological systems.  He has applied his research to a wide variety of areas including fluid dynamics, smart materials, large space structures, nano-devices, aerodynamic design and energy management.  Dr. Burns has been a consultant and advisor to Booz Allen & Hamilton, NASA Langley Research Center, The Air Force Research Labs, DARPA, The Babcock and Wilcox Company, Solers Inc., United Technologies and held several academic visiting positions in the USA and Europe.

EDUCATION:

1967, B.S.E., Mathematics, Arkansas State University
1968 M.S.E., Mathematics, Arkansas State University
1970 M.A., Mathematics, The University of Oklahoma
1973 Ph.D., Mathematics, The University of Oklahoma

APPOINTMENTS:

1995-Present:  Hatcher Professor of Mathematics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.
1987-Present: Technical Director, Interdisciplinary Center for Applied Mathematics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.
1983-1984:      Program Advisor, Air Force Office of Scientific Research, Washington, D.C.
1982-Present:  Professor of Mathematics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.
1978-1982:      Associate Professor of Mathematics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.
1974-1978:      Assistant Professor of Mathematics, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA.
1973-1974:     Assistant Professor, Lefschetz Center for Dynamical Systems, Brown University, Providence, RI.

VISITING POSITIONS:
Institut Für Mathematik, University of Graz, Graz, Austria

Distinguished Visiting Scientist, Control Sciences Center of Excellence, Air Force Research Laboratory, Wright-Patterson AFB

Department of Mathematics, University of Trier, Trier, Germany

Center for Applied Mathematical Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA