The First Nobel Prize in Control Engineering [From the Editor

Abstract

A fact that does not appear to be well known is that the Nobel Prize has recognized some engineering accomplishments, including an accomplishment in control engineering in 1912 when Nils Gustaf Dalen received the Nobel Prize in Physics for his "invention of automatic regulators for use in conjunction with gas accumulators for illuminating lighthouses and buoys." In the last 20 years or so, large monetary prizes to recognize major engineering accomplishments have been created in specific countries, but such prizes have not had the same gravitas as the Nobel Prize - partly because the prizes are newer, partly because many of the prizes are restricted to people from one country, and partly because the recipients are often scientists rather than engineers. For example, the recipients of one of the two large U.S. engineering prizes are typically biochemists, biologists, or medical doctors rather than engineers - the author feels this practice obscures the distinction between science and engineering rather than better educating the public on the value of engineering. One engineering-related international prize is the Kyoto Prize in Advanced Technology, with past recipients including some engineers such as Rudolf Emil Kalman, but the prize is not focused on engineering per se and is still largely awarded to scientists.