Happy IEEE Day 2020!

IEEE Day commemorates the anniversary of the meeting in Philadelphia in 1884 when members of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, one of IEEE’s (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers) two predecessor societies, gathered for the first time to share technical ideas.

Most IEEE members are electrical, electronic, and computer engineers. However the IEEE is open to individuals who by education or experience give evidence of competence in an IEEE designated field. The designated fields are:

• Engineering,
• Computer Sciences and Information Technology,
• Physical Sciences,
• Biological and Medical Sciences,
• Mathematics,
• Technical Communications,
• Education,
• Management,
• and Law and Policy.

The organization is responsible for a number of protocols and standards used in a number of devices we use every day including:

• IEEE 802.11 – Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)
• IEEE 802.15 – aka Bluetooth

I am a senior member of the organization. In order to gain senior member, candidate shall have been in professional practice for at least ten years and shall have shown significant performance over a period of at least five of those years, such performance including one or more of the following:

• Substantial responsibility or achievement in one or more IEEE-designated fields
• Publication of papers, books, or inventions in one or more IEEE-designated fields
• Technical direction or management of important work with evidence of accomplishment in one or more IEEE-designated fields
• Recognized contributions to the welfare of the professions encompassed by one or more of the IEEE-designated fields
• Development or furtherance of important courses in one or more of the IEEE-designated fields at an institution in the REP list
• Contributions equivalent to those of the above areas related to IEEE-designated fields, provided these contributions serve to advance progress substantially in IEEE-designated fields

Note: Less than 9 percent of IEEE members attain the level of senior member.

Note 2: Information gathered from ieee.org and ieeeday.org.