Professor Shin-Tson Wu Receives Volunteer Service Award from Society for Information Display
The honor recognizes Wu’s years of commitment to his colleagues in the field
CREOL Professor Shin-Tson Wu has dedicated much of his career to the technology behind displays. He’s authored nearly 700 journal papers, holds 100 U.S. patents, has graduated more than 40 Ph.D. students, and is a member of the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame.
Now he’ll have something new to display in his office: the Lawrence Tannas Award for Volunteer Service from the Society for Information Display (SID). The honor recognizes Wu’s work at a SID committee chair, seminar speaker, student chapter advisor, and editor for SID’s publications.
The honor is also personal for Wu, who is no stranger to the award’s namesake.
“I knew Larry Tannas and his wife Carol personally,” Wu says. “I was very touched by reading his story.”
That story – along with Wu’s – was recently featured in SID’s Information Display magazine. Before Tannas’ death in 2021, he was a major figure in the display industry. SID says he helped build the organization’s modern foundation as a teacher, mentor, innovator, entrepreneur, and innovator. A past president and board member of SID, Tannas is remembered as the “ultimate SID volunteer”, having greatly contributed to the Los Angeles SID chapter from 1976 onward.
Wu belonged to that same chapter while he was working with Hughes Research Lab. An SID member since 1984, he was elected a Fellow in 2001, later establishing the SID chapter at UCF. Wu’s service to the organization is recognized not just as a groundbreaking researcher who elevated SID’s publications, but also an awards committee chair and fundraiser, as well as the AR/VR subcommittee chair. He was also instrumental in establishing the SID Taipei Chapter, and he visits Taiwan each year to hold seminars with colleagues and industry representatives.
“I am so grateful to UCF for giving me such a nice stage to perform, my diligent students for their scientific creativities, and my family for their strong support,” Wu says.
This follows Wu’s recent recognition with UCF’s inaugural Medal of Societal Impact, which highlighted his continuing contributions to the field as a Pegasus Professor. A pioneer in liquid crystal displays, his research has helped advance the development of technologies such as smart phones, tablets, augmented reality and virtual reality.
