David O. Siegmund Awarded Honorary Doctor of Science Degree
05-14-2005
On May 14, 2005, David O. Siegmund was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree during the Purdue University commencement ceremonies in West Lafayette, Indiana at the Elliot Hall of Music.
David O. Siegmund was the invited speaker at the Department of Statistics Prem S. Puri Memorial Lecture on Friday, May 13, 2005 at 4:30 in MATH 175. The title of his talk was "Genetic Mapping in Experimental and Human Genetics."
David O. Siegmund is renowned worldwide for his solutions to statistical problems that arise in real-world scientific applications and require novel probability theory for their resolution.
His work in sequential analysis, renewal theory, boundary crossing probabilities and maxima of random fields is especially noteworthy.
Born and raised near St. Louis, Siegmund earned his bachelor's degree from Southern Methodist University in 1963 and his doctorate from Columbia University in 1966, when he began his formal teaching and research career by remaining at Columbia.
In 1976, he left his post as professor at Columbia for Stanford University, where he is currently the John D. and Sigrid Banks Professor. Prior to his days at Columbia, Siegmund briefly served as a teaching assistant at Purdue University in 1965-66. During his career, he was awarded numerous visiting professorships and fellowships that took him to Hebrew University, University of Zurich, University of Heidelberg, University of Oxford and University of Cambridge.
Siegmund has been awarded numerous honors and accolades, including Woodrow Wilson Fellow, Danforth Fellow, National Science Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow, Guggenheim Fellow, Dean's Award for Teaching, Humboldt Prize, Einstein and Fulbright Fellowships, and several other prestigious lectureships.
In addition to editorial service and duty as an external reviewer, Siegmund's service includes the presidency of the Bernoulli Society and the Institute of Mathematical Sciences. He has been a leader in opening new lines of inquiry and involving graduate students in his work. As such, many of his former doctoral students are now top statisticians, including Thomas Sellke, Associate Department Head at Purdue.
Siegmund is an internationally known expert in the application of probability theory to genetic mapping and the theory of sequential analysis. As an effective contributor to several important fields in theoretical and applied statistics, very few living statisticians can match his contributions. In 2002, Siegmund was elected to the National Academy of Sciences, Applied Mathematical Sciences section.