John William Bandler (9 November 1941 – 28 September 2023) was a Canadian professor,C. Kudsia, L. Keyes, A. Stajcer, R. Douville, and M. Nakhla, "Microwave in Canada," IEEE Microwave Magazine, vol.13, no.3, pp. 87-106, 2012. engineer, entrepreneur, artist, speaker, playwright, and author of fiction and nonfiction. Bandler is known for his invention of

space mapping The space mapping methodology for modeling and design optimization of engineering systems was first discovered by John Bandler in 1993. It uses relevant existing knowledge to speed up model generation and design optimization of a system. The kn ...

technology and his contributions to device modeling,

computer-aided design Computer-aided design (CAD) is the use of computers (or ) to aid in the creation, modification, analysis, or optimization of a design. This software is used to increase the productivity of the designer, improve the quality of design, improve c ...

microwave engineering Microwave engineering pertains to the study and design of microwave circuits, components, and systems. Fundamental principles are applied to analysis, design and measurement techniques in this field. The short wavelengths involved distinguish this ...

mathematical optimization Mathematical optimization (alternatively spelled ''optimisation'') or mathematical programming is the selection of a best element, with regard to some criteria, from some set of available alternatives. It is generally divided into two subfiel ...

, and yield-driven design.

Early life and education

The only child of parents who escaped from Nazi-occupied Vienna to

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

, from where they were subsequently evacuated along with other Jewish refugees in 1941, Bandler was born in

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

. After the War, his parents returned to Cyprus, where Bandler attended the Junior School in

Nicosia Nicosia, also known as Lefkosia and Lefkoşa, is the capital and largest city of Cyprus. It is the southeasternmost of all EU member states' capital cities. Nicosia has been continuously inhabited for over 5,500 years and has been the capi ...

, and, for a year, The English School in Nicosia. After a brief stay in Vienna in 1956, he left for

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and completed his schooling in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. He entered

Imperial College Imperial College London, also known as Imperial, is a public research university in London, England. Its history began with Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria, who envisioned a cultural district in South Kensington that included museums ...

of Science and Technology,

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

, in 1960, graduating in 1963 with First Class Honours in Electrical Engineering; and in 1967 with a Ph.D. in Microwaves. In 1976 he received his D.Sc. (Eng.) from the University of London in Microwaves, Computer-aided Design, and Optimization of Circuits and Systems.

Career

Bandler worked as an engineer at Mullard Research Laboratories (later called Philips Research Laboratories) in Redhill, Surrey, England, from 1966 to 1967. He was a Postdoctoral Fellow and Sessional Lecturer at the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...

from 1967 to 1969. Bandler joined McMaster University in 1969 as an assistant professor, becoming associate professor in 1971 and Professor in 1974. He served as chairman of the Department of Electrical Engineering from 1978 to 1979 and was Dean of the Faculty of Engineering from 1979 to 1981. During his time at McMaster, Bandler was coordinator of the Group on Simulation, Optimization and Control from 1973 until 1983, when he formed the Simulation Optimization Systems Research Laboratory. Dr. Bandler became a Professor Emeritus of McMaster University in 2000. In 1983 Bandler founded Optimization Systems Associates Inc. (OSA), and the company was acquired by

Hewlett-Packard The Hewlett-Packard Company, commonly shortened to Hewlett-Packard ( ) or HP, was an American multinational information technology company. It was founded by Bill Hewlett and David Packard in 1939 in a one-car garage in Palo Alto, California ...

in 1997. OSA technology became part of HP EEsof, passing on to

Agilent Technologies Agilent Technologies, Inc. is an American global company headquartered in Santa Clara, California, that provides instruments, software, services, and consumables for laboratories. Agilent was established in 1999 as a spin-off from Hewlett-Packar ...

and then to

Keysight Technologies Keysight Technologies, Inc. is an American company that manufactures electronics test and measurement equipment and software. The name is a blend of ''key'' and ''insight''. The company was formed as a spin-off of Agilent Technologies, which inh ...

. In 2012, a special session at the

IEEE The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is an American 501(c)(3) organization, 501(c)(3) public charity professional organization for electrical engineering, electronics engineering, and other related disciplines. The IEEE ...

MTT-S International Microwave Symposium paid tribute to Bandler on the occasion of his 70th birthday for more than forty-five years of contributions to the field of microwave theory and techniques. Dr. Bandler was appointed Officer of the Order of Canada in 2016 for his contributions and has received several other awards for his work. In 2013, Bandler reviewed the emergence and history of

in IEEE Canadian Review. It spans two decades of development and engineering applications. In 2018, marking a quarter century since his discovery of

this paper was re-set and reprinted in IEEE Microwave Magazine. In 2016, Rayas-Sánchez reviewed the state of the art of aggressive

, a methodology pioneered by Bandler and his team. Bandler joined Rayas-Sánchez and Koziel in a review paper for a 2021 collection of invited papers marking the inaugural issue of the new open access IEEE Journal of Microwaves.

Nontechnical

In 2000, Bandler turned his attention to creative writing. This led to literary, theatrical, and presentation skill endeavors, including theatrical productions and initiatives, and workshops on creativity, communication of scientific and academic research, and the Three Minute Thesis competition.

Key honours

*Fellow of IEE (IET) *Fellow of EIC *Life Fellow of IEEE *Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada *Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering

Awards

*Automatic Radio Frequency Techniques Group (ARFTG) Automated Measurements Career Award (1994) *IEEE MTT-S Microwave Application Award (2004) *IEEE Canada A.G.L. McNaughton Gold Medal (2012) *Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (2012) *IEEE MTT-S Microwave Career Award (2013) *McMaster University's Faculty of Engineering Research Achievement Award (2014) *Appointed an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

in 2016. *McMaster University's 2018 Lifetime Innovator Award (2018) *The OPEA Gold Medal from

Professional Engineers Ontario Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO; known until 1993 as the Association of Professional Engineers of Ontario, APEO) is a self-regulatory body that licenses and governs Ontario's professional engineers. PEO was created on June 15, 1922. It has a ...

(PEO) (2018) *

IEEE Electromagnetics Award The IEEE Electromagnetics Award was established by the IEEE Board of Directors in 1996. This award is presented for outstanding contributions to electromagnetics theory, application or education. It may be presented to an individual only. Reci ...

(2023)

Lectures

*"Human aspects of communication and persuasion: first impressions and subtext", rump session of IEEE MTT-S Int. Microwave Symposium (Montréal, QC, June 19, 2012). *"From creativity to success via risk and setback: an insider's perspective", public lecture (McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, April 11, 2013). *"Explain less, predict more", TEDx McMaster U Conference (McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, February 2, 2014). *"Effective presentations", professional session: Preparing and Presenting Papers for MTT-S Journals and Conferences, IEEE MTT-S Int. Microwave Symp. (San Francisco, CA, May 25, 2016). *"You, your slides and your posters: allies or foes?", public lecture (McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, November 4, 2016). *John Bandler and Ana Kovacevic, "Clear, brief, engaging: your thesis in three minutes", public workshop (McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, January 24, 2017). *J. W. Bandler, E. M. Kiley, and A. Kovacevic, "The art of effectively communicating complex, highly technical work in three minutes", IEEE MTT-S Webinar, March 28, 2017. *J. W. Bandler, M. Ogrodnik, and D. Tajik, "Clear, brief, engaging: your thesis in three minutes", public workshop (McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, February 13, 2018). *J. W. Bandler, E. M. Kiley, and D. Tajik, "Communicating your highly technical work to non-specialists in three short minutes", IEEE MTT-S Webinar, March 13, 2018.

Plays

*"Christmas Eve at the Julibee Motel," Stage Play, (Hamilton Fringe Festival, Hamilton, ON, July 2010). *"59 Minutes in the Maxwell Suite," Stage Play, (Hamilton Fringe Festival, Hamilton, ON, July 2011). *"That The Multitude May Live," Stage Play, (Hamilton Fringe Festival, Hamilton, ON, July 2012). *"The Trial of Naomi Verne," Stage Play, (Hamilton Fringe Festival, Hamilton, ON, July 2014). *"Christmas Eve at the Julibee Motel," Stage Play, (Hamilton Fringe Festival, Hamilton, ON, July 2016).

References

External links

Osacad.com
The homepage for Optimization Systems Associates, archived in 1996 by The Wayback Machine.
Bandler Corporation

McMaster University, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

YouTube

John Bandler Short Stories

Optimization Systems Associates
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bandler, John 1941 births 2023 deaths Academic staff of McMaster University Electrical engineering academics Canadian electrical engineers Canadian academics in engineering Canadian engineering researchers Alumni of Imperial College London Fellows of the IEEE Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada Fellows of the Canadian Academy of Engineering Fellows of the Engineering Institute of Canada Officers of the Order of Canada People from Jerusalem Microwave engineers