Large Banner Ad
Small Banner Ad

November 25, 2009

Elmasry among the 500 Most Influential Muslims in the World

The Canadian Charger

Dr. Mohamed ElmasryThose close to Dr. Mohamed Elmasry, founding member of the Canadian Charger’s editorial board and professor emeritus of computer engineering at the University of Waterloo, have often heard him say that he wants to do more than earn a living: He wants to make a difference.

Now, appearing in a Georgetown University publication entitled “The 500 Most Influential Muslims in the World” is a clear indication that he has made a difference.

Prof. Elmasry was selected for his scholarly work in microchip design and many leadership roles including being the founding president of the Canadian Islamic Congress and Islamic History Month Canada and founding editor of islamnow.com and thecanadiancharger.com

During his academic career, Dr. Elmasry has supervised the research work of more than 1,000 doctoral and master's candidates and undergraduate students, including RIM (BlackBerry) co-founder Mike Lazaridis.

Audiences have heard his lectures on Islam, as well as on microchip design, in more than 40 countries -- including China, Japan, India, Pakistan, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Russia, the former USSR, the Arab world, Europe, United States and Canada.

Born in Cairo, Egypt, he has continued to work in the area of microchip design for the last 40 years.

This year’s volume of The 500 Most Influential Muslims in the World is edited by Profs John Esposito and Ibrahim Kalin.

“Influence in the Muslim world is derived from two sources: scholarship, and respect and trust,” Profs Esposito and Kalin explain, “Scholars are able to educate the masses or give respected opinions, and respected and trusted persons carry the weight of social and historical capital as leaders in their societies.”

Prof. Elmasry’s editorials on religious, national and international issues are regularly featured in leading overseas and Canadian newspapers, including the Egyptian Gazette, the Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, as well as in local-regional dailies such as the K-W Record. He has been a frequent guest on TV and radio shows in Canada, Egypt, and Kuwait.

Dr. Elmasry, listed in many Who's Who publications as one of the world's top experts in microchip design, was selected as Canada's top engineering professor of the year 2000 by Canadian Business and featured in the May 1, 2000 article, “Professors to the Stars.”

Prof. Elmasry is a founding director of the University of Waterloo's VLSI (very large scale integration) research group, receiving millions of dollars to fund his research, from some of the largest, most famous corporations in the world.

He is also a founding member of the Canadian Conference on VLSI, the Canadian Microelectronics Corporation, MICRONET, the Canadian Institute for Teaching Overseas and the International Conference on Microelectronics (ICM).

For more than twenty years ICM’s objective was to bridge the technological gap between industrialized and developing countries, and acting as a forum for cultural, technological and educational exchanges. Past ICM hosts have included Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, Kuwait, Malaysia, Indonesia, Iran, Morocco, Lebanon, and Pakistan.

Dr. Elmasry was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada (FRSC) in 1998, for "his world-class leadership in the area of Digital Integrated Microchip Design for the last 30 years." In 1997, he was elected a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering (FCAE), for "outstanding scientific, technological, industrial and academic contributions to the area of digital integrated circuits and systems, particularly in VLSI microelectronics." In 2008 he was elected a Fellow of the Engineering Institute of Canada:

http://www.eic-ici.ca/english/tour/cit08/Elmasry.pdf

And in 1988, he became a Fellow of the International Institute for Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), for his leading contributions to digital integrated circuits.

Dr. Elmasry held the National Science and Engineering Research Council/Bell Northern Research, Research Chair in VLSI design at the University of Waterloo for ten years, from 1986 through 1996.

He has served as a consultant to research laboratories in Canada, Japan and the United States, including RIM, Lucent Technologies, GE, CDC, Ford Microelectronics, IBM, Actel, Hitachi, Rockwell, Gennum, Xerox, BNR and NorTel Networks, in the area of microchip design.

During sabbatical leaves from the University of Waterloo, Dr. Elmasry has consulted at the Micro Components Organization, Burroughs Corporation (Unisys), San Diego, California, Kuwait University, Kuwait and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne, Switzerland.

A prolific author, Dr. Elmasry has written and co-written more than 500 research papers and 16 books on microchip design. Many of his books were translated into Arabic and Chinese.

At the University of Waterloo, Dr. Elmasry is also a founding faculty member of the Middle East Studies and founding coordinator of the Muslim Study Group.

As a lifelong religious scholar by vocation, Dr. Elmasry authored the bestseller, "1,000 Questions on Islam" (published in both Arabic and English), “Divine Love,” and “Spiritual Fitness for Life.” He coauthored the recently published book, “In Canada – a photo journey among Muslims.”

He has served as a member of the Canadian and the Ontario Multipath Committee and has presented numerous public lectures on issues in Islam and Islamic culture, to churches, schools, universities and social organizations.

He has been honoured with the Volunteer Service Award by the Ontario Interfaith Council on Spiritual and Religious Care and Chaplaincy Services, and by the Ontario Ministry of the Solicitor General and Correctional Services.

Dr. Elmasry is married to Elizabeth and they have been blessed with four children and four grandchildren.

  • Think green before you print
  • Respond to the editor
  • Email
  • Delicious
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • MySpace
  • StumbleUpon
Subscribe to the E-bulletin

Praying in the time of genocide

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel