Paul Israelsen Receives Prestigious Utah Governor's Medal for Science and Technology

NORTH LOGAN, Utah, Jan. 19, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Energy Dynamics Laboratory Deputy Director Paul Israelsen was presented the Governor's Medal for Science and Technology yesterday by Utah Governor Gary Herbert to recognize Israelsen's transformational solutions to environmental issues, which foster both the economic growth and the energy independence of Utah.

During a ceremony in Salt Lake City, Herbert presented the award to Israelsen. The citation that accompanied the award states that, "Paul's contributions will help place Utah at the forefront of transformational energy systems for the future."

Over the course of his career, Israelsen has employed more than 500 Utahns through multiple start-up companies he helped develop in the state. Israelsen has also been awarded 20 patents that have contributed to the development of digital television, video telephones, signing services for the deaf, digital movies and photography, and laser-based measurement systems. Israelsen was also a principle architect of a proprietary video compression algorithm, which was incorporated as the mainstream baseline compression algorithm for Apple's QuickTime rich media environment. Israelsen has served on several standards committees, including the MPEG 4 Committee, where he helped determine methods of defining compression of audio visual data, and the ITU Standards Bodies, which develop international standards for communications, such as telephony/video conferencing. In 2009, Israelsen joined several other professionals to found the Energy Dynamics Laboratory, which was created as a research and development organization and an incubator for the startup of new businesses. In his role at EDL, Israelsen oversees the development of multiple new and innovative technologies including Inductive Power Transfer, a wireless technology that will safely and effectively transfer electricity to electric vehicles from roadbeds and parking stalls.

"This recognition is a tribute to Paul and all he has accomplished in the technology sector, not only for the people of Utah, but for citizens across the Country," said Jeff Muhs, director of EDL. "Paul's work in the area of digital file compression has impacted nearly every person who uses audio or video files. His current work as deputy director at EDL will be no less revolutionary, as his technical contributions to the next generation of energy systems are already proving to be integral solutions to America's most intractable energy and environmental challenges."

In addition to his leadership role at EDL, Israelsen has been a Research Associate Professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at Utah State University, teaching courses in very-large-scale integration (VLSI) design and microelectronics. Israelsen is the head of the board of directors for the Center for Active Sensing and Imaging, and is a founding board member of the Institute for Intuitive Buildings.

According to the Utah Governor's Office of Economic Development, the Governor's Medal award program was initiated in 1987 to recognize those who made career achievements and/or provided distinguished service that has benefited the State of Utah in the areas of Science and Technology. Specific criteria were developed to determine the significance of the contributions to the economic development of the state.

Founded in 2009, EDL develops and deploys transformational energy systems, providing considerable improvements to U.S. energy security in the following five areas: Intuitive and Solar Buildings, Vehicle and Roadway Electrification, Environmental and Wind Measurements, Next Generation Fossil Energy, and Algae Energy Systems. EDL focuses on prototyping, demonstrating, deploying and commercializing innovative technologies for renewable and advanced energy systems that will help solve national and international environmental issues. EDL provides customers and partners with innovative, high-value solutions and services that can rapidly be commercialized through industry friendly practices and efficient technology transfer.

SOURCE Utah State University Research Foundation