Fellowship / Fellows

Petros Koumoutsakos

  • 2016–2017
  • Engineering & Computer Science
  • William and Flora Hewlett Foundation Fellow
  • ETH Zurich (Switzerland)
Headshot of Petros Koumoutsakos
Photo by Tony Rinaldo

This information is accurate as of the fellowship year indicated for each fellow.

Petros Koumoutsakos, a professor of computational science at ETH Zurich, is interested in identifying computing hallmarks across disciplinary problems and advance methods for their solution. He employs these methods to understand the role of fluid flows in phenomena as varied as collective fish swimming and blood transport in cancer-induced vasculatures. Computing is revolutionizing our intellectual capacity to tackle complex problems. At the same time, the energy demands of computers are soaring while vast amounts of data are challenging the classical methods of computational model building. His work addresses these challenges by focusing on fundamental computing patterns: multiscale modeling, uncertainty quantification, and their interfaces.

During his stay at Radcliffe, Koumoutsakos is exploring how these interfaces can be translated into algorithms for computers equipped with a range of processor accuracies. He is interested in such questions as: How much energy must we consume for answering a particular scientific problem? Is it possible to design algorithms with a specific tradeoff between precision in computing and communication? Do these questions intersect with the social sciences and the arts?

Koumoutsakos holds degrees in naval architecture, aeronautics, and applied mathematics. He has served in faculties of mechanical engineering and computer science. He is fellow of the American Physical Society, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, and he is a recipient of the ACM Gordon Bell Prize and of a European Research Council Advanced Grant.

Our 2023–2024 Fellows

01 / 09

News & Ideas