ABSTRACT

Innovation has been recognized as the key ingredient for sustained success for everything we do in this highly competitive global environment. However, we have been over-used and its true meaning is getting unclear.  So what is innovation? Or it's more fundamental form, creativity? What are the traits and competencies of a successful innovator? On the other hand, what external factors and actions can easily suppress or kill a budding innovative idea?

In this talk I will elucidate such points with some past personal examples in my own research and some well-known US Companies, such as Kodak, AT&T,..to demonstrate these points, and will attempt to stimulate some  thoughts on potential application of these ideas to enhance the innovative process in research, and in your role as a student,  educator and researchers.

BIOGRAPHY

Professor C.P. Wong is with the School of Materials Science and Engineering at Georgia Tech (GT) where is a Regents’ Professor and the Charles Smithgall Institute-endowed Chair on a long leave as the Dean of Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. Prior to joining GT, he was with AT&T Bell Laboratories for many years and was an AT&T Bell Labs Fellow in 1993.  Prof. Wong received his BS degree from Purdue University, MS and PhD degrees from The Pennsylvania State University and a postdoc at Stanford University with the late Nobel Laureate Professor Henry Taube. His research interests focus on the areas of materials and processes for electronic, photonic, MEMS, sensors, and energy harvesting and storage. He has published over 1,000 technical papers, 12 books and holds over 65 US Patents. Prof. Wong served as the IEEE CPMT Society President in 1992 and 1993 has received many awards among those the 2000 IEEE Millennium Medal, 2006 IEEE CPMT Field Award, the 2013 International Dresden Barkhauser Award(Germany). He is an IEEE Fellow(in 1992) and a member of the US National Academy of Engineering(in 2000) and a Foreign Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering(in 2013).