Jong-Shi Pang, USC Professor of Industrial & Systems Engineering, was recently inducted into the National Academy of Engineering (NAE). Induction to the NAE is considered one of the highest professional honors for engineers to receive. NAE members represent leading individuals in business management, technical positions, academia, government, and private engineering organizations.


Pang is a respected expert in the field of operations research and optimization in systems with multiple competing players. His work uses mathematics to address problems that are subject to uncertainty or randomness that may not follow defined patterns or trends. He brings accountability to a broad range of industries such as engineering and economics, using quantifiable facts and logical arguments. Pang said, “One research area that is of great interest to me is transportation science, particularly the subject of equilibrium in traffic systems. Most recently, I have teamed up with colleagues to study equilibrium models that involve shared rides and e-hailing in combined morning and evening commutes. This is a very practical research topic with great intellectual challenges and relevance in commuters’ daily trip planning to and from work; the improved understanding of the network users’ behavior in the presence of such new modes of commute will enable traffic planners to better manage and control the network for greater system efficiency.”

Pang is also the recent recipient of the 2019 John von Neumann Theory Prize from the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS), which awards an individual’s body of work rather than a single achievement. When asked about his reaction to the NAE induction, Pang said, “I am very honored to be elected a member of the most prestigious society of the engineering field.


Read more about Pang’s mentioned research on the equilibrium model developed with colleague researchers that captures transportation mode switches in morning and evening commutes.