August 30, 2017
This fall we welcome new faculty member Takashi Tanaka who joins us an assistant professor. Tanaka’s research interests focus on efficient and reliable real-time decision-making algorithms for autonomous robots and humans. He specializes in stochastic and non-stochastic optimal control, robust control, distributed and networked control, optimization, and game theory. His recent research activities explore the interface between control theory and information theory.
Before joining UT Austin, Tanaka was a postdoctoral researcher at KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. From 2012–2015, he was a postdoctoral associate at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Tanaka holds Ph.D. and M.S. degrees in aerospace engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) and a B.S. in aerospace engineering from the University of Tokyo, Japan.
What attracted you to UT ASE/EM?
I'm just one of many who were attracted by the international reputation of UT, the liveliness of the city of Austin and the warm weather. I was also attracted by the great history and the achievements of the ASE/EM department, as well as the department's young and talented faculty members in my research area (controls, autonomy and robotics).
What do you enjoy most about your specific research field?
As a control theorist, I'm extremely delighted by the discoveries of new methodologies, algorithms and mathematical proofs. Exploring control theory is similar to treasure hunting. I believe many beautiful theories that can potentially change the world are still hidden and waiting to be discovered. A lot of interdisciplinary collaborations are required in my research field, and I enjoy them as well.
What are your favorite hobbies?
I like baseball (watching and playing), running and painting. But most recently, spending time with my family has been the most refreshing for me.
