The ROSE Prize 2008

M.J. Nigel Priestley

Recipient of the Award’s First Edition (2008) M.J. NIGEL PRIESTLEY
The first edition of the ROSE School Prize has been awarded to M.J. Nigel Priestley, on the basis of a unanimous decision of the Scientific Committee of the Eucentre Foundation, with the followingmotivation: Nigel Priestley has an exceptional record of research results that have influenced the state-of-the-art and the professional practice on many aspects, such as the consideration of thermal effects on bridge decks, and the seismic design and assessment of masonry and concrete buildings, precast structures, tanks, silos, port structures, and bridges. His books on “Seismic Design of Reinforced Concrete and Masonry Structures”, “Seismic Design and Retrofitting of Bridges” and “Displacement Based Seismic Design of Structures” have had an extraordinary impact on the evolution of the profession, and have been translated into Chinese, Japanese, Greek and Spanish. He played a fundamental role in the development of new lines of thought in seismic design, particularly with his works on Myths and Fallacies in Earthquake Engineering and on Displacement Based Design. He participated in many world class engineering projects, such as the Rion Antirion Bridge, the Bolu Viaducts, the Port of Los Angeles, always providing effective and often original and unconventional contributions. His former PhD students, spread in universities and consulting firms of all continents, and his enthusiastic participation have been essential for the establishment, development and recognition of the ROSE School. The unusual combination of scientific competence, education skills, fast and innovative thinking capacity, leadership attitude, all tempered by an acute sense of humour and wide spectrum culture makes him the ideal recipient of the first ROSE School Prize, setting up a very high standard for future editions.

Biography
Nigel Priestley is Emeritus Professor of Structural Engineering at the University of California at San Diego, and is co-director of the Rose School. His research is focused on the seismic design of concrete and masonry structures, and on seismic design philosophy. He has published more than 650 books, technical papers and reports, mainly related to seismic design, and has received more than 30 international awards for his research. He is a fellow of the ACI, the IPENZ, NZ Society for Earthquake Engineering, NZ Concrete Society, and is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand.

First Edition of the ROSE School Prize awarded on May 23rd 2008
The first edition of the ROSE School Prize is a sculpture by Graziano Leonardelli.