Shashi Shekhar (computer science and engineering) is among five recipients of the 2005 Distinguished McKnight University Professorship, which recognizes and rewards outstanding mid-career faculty. Recipients of the University-wide honor are chosen on the merit of their scholarly achievement and potential for greater attainment, the quality of their teaching and advising, and their contributions to the wider community.
Shekhar is a world leader in the area of spatial databases, an interdisciplinary field at the intersection of computer science and geographic information science. A major goal of his research is to understand the computational structure of very large spatial databases needed by physical sciences and engineering disciplines. His expertise is widely sought after by policymakers in the U.S. and abroad, and his research is now playing a critical role in evacuation planning in the context of homeland security. His distinguished academic record includes two books and over 160 refereed papers.
