Main content start
Doing the Coolest Thing
Chris Gerdes might not be reinventing the wheel, but he is certainly reinventing the way we use it. Gerdes is a professor of mechanical engineering at Stanford University.
NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS MAGAZINE
Chris Gerdes might not be reinventing the wheel, but he is certainly reinventing the way we use it. Gerdes is a professor of mechanical engineering at Stanford University, and director of the school’s Center for Automotive Research and Revs Program. Together with his team, he studied the brainwaves of race car drivers to develop a car that can travel 150 miles per hour and take hairpin turns—all without a human driver behind the wheel. He is also developing programs that help drivers stay in their lanes and avoid collisions, as well as studying new combustion processes for engines.
