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Engineering
whiz wins prestigious Rhodes Scholarship
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Ankur
Luthra, winner of a 2003 Rhodes Scholarship, is the only child
of Ravi and Tripta, who immigrated to the U.S. from Punjab,
India. "I've been very fortunate in my life, so it's
important for me to give back to society," says Ankur.
"My inspiration — my parents — are very selfless,
and they instilled those values in me."
BART NAGEL PHOTO |
Ankur Luthra, a Berkeley senior double majoring in electrical
engineering and computer sciences (EECS) and business administration,
has been awarded a prestigious Rhodes Scholarship for 2003. He
is the 21st Rhodes scholar from Berkeley and the first since 1989.
The Rhodes Scholarship Trust in December announced 32 U.S. winners,
chosen from 981 applicants representng 341 colleges and universities
nationwide.
"This is fantastic and a great honor for Ankur Luthra and
his parents," said Chancellor Robert M. Berdahl. The Rhodes
Scholarship is widely recognized as one of the most competitive
and prestigious because so many Rhodes scholars have achieved
leadership positions and distinction. Past Rhodes Scholars include
Bill Clinton and Bill Bradley.
The 21-year-old Luthra maintains a 4.0 grade point average and
is editor-in-chief and founder of the Berkeley EECS Research
Journal, as well as a member of several honor societies,
including Phi Beta Kappa and MENSA. In the past three years, he
has received 14 scholarships and awards, including the Regents’,
Barry M. Goldwater, and Donald A. Strauss scholarships.
In 2001, he founded the Berkeley nonprofit Computer Literacy 4
Kids to help underprivileged youth receive computers, software,
and training. In 1999, he founded the music portal, YourMP3Guide.com,
which fell victim to the dot-com meltdown one year later. Still,
Luthra looks upon the experience with fondness.
"You learn from your failures as well as your successes,"
he said. "You have to be able to take risks in life if you’re
going to succeed, and you can’t do that if you're afraid
to fail once in a while."
The scholarship, created in 1902 through the will of British philanthropist
Cecil Rhodes, is the oldest international study award available
to American students and provides two to three years of study
at the University of Oxford in England. Luthra said he intends
to pursue a master’s degree in computer science there.
Recipients are chosen for their academic achievement, integrity
of character, spirit of unselfishness, respect for others, potential
for leadership, and physical vigor. The 32 Americans will join
a group of international scholars from 18 other jurisdictions
worldwide.
Luthra has worked on game-theory models of the Internet and artificial
intelligence projects designed to improve the throwing skills
of robots. His career goal, he says, is to work on assistive robotics
and technology that solves societal problems. He is also studying
the business of nonprofit organizations.
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