RWTH Aachen University: Another award for computer scientists from RWTH Aachen
The renowned Association for Computing Machinery – ACM for short – has appointed two scientists from Aachen as their fellows. Professor Wil van der Aalst, Chair of Computer Science 9 – Process and Data Science, was recognized for his work in the areas of process mining, process management and data science. The achievements in model testing of software and probabilistic systems by Professor Joost-Pieter Katoen, holder of the Chair of Computer Science 2 – Software Modeling and Verification, were also recognized.
The ACM is the world’s largest society for educational and scientific data processing, bringing together teachers, researchers and experts. She wants to encourage the exchange of knowledge and resources and tackle the challenges of the subject. The ACM Fellows program, initiated in 1993, recognizes exceptional contributions from leading experts in the computer field. They would thus contribute to innovations that significantly improve many areas of technology, industry, and private life. With four researchers, RWTH has the most of these fellows in Germany. In Germany there are only 16 researchers with this award.
Joost-Pieter Katoen
Chair of Computer Science 2 – Software Modeling and Verification
Joost-Pieter Katoen studied computer science at the University of Twente in the Netherlands. After working in the Dutch Philips Research Lab and at the Universities of Eindhoven, Twente and Erlangen-Nürnberg, he joined RWTH in 2004. He heads the Chair for Computer Science 2 and also conducts research in the “Formal Methods and Tools” group at the University of Twente. His research contributions range from theoretical and algorithmic achievements to software development in the industrial sector, especially in the aerospace sector. He develops models for testing complex systems before they are actually built and programmed. Through his work, he enables a prediction of the reactions of a system to certain scenarios.
Katoen received an honorary doctorate from Aalborg University in Denmark for his scientific activities in the field of software modeling and computer-aided verification. He also has an ERC Advanced Research Grant and is a member of the Academia Europea as well as Theodore von Kármán Fellow and Distinguished Professor at RWTH Aachen University.
Wil van der Aalst
Computer Science 9 – Process and Data Science
Van der Aalst is a leading expert in the areas of process mining, business process management, workflow management systems and data science. He developed the first process mining techniques such as “Process Discovery”, “Conformance Checking” and predictive algorithms. Numerous commercially marketed process mining tools are based on his research over the past two decades.
Until the end of 2017, the computer scientist was Scientific Director of the Data Science Center Eindhoven and head of the “Architecture of Information Systems” group at the University of Eindhoven. He came to RWTH Aachen University in 2018 with an Alexander von Humboldt Professorship. Van der Aalst is an honorary doctorate from Hasselt University and honorary professor at the Higher School of Economics Moscow. He is also a member of the Royal Holland Society of Science and Humanities, the Academia Europea, the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences and on the Board of Governors of Tilburg University. In 2020 he was also elected IEEE Fellow and IFIP Fellow.