James C. Liao
James C. Liao | |
|---|---|
| 廖俊智 | |
Official portrait, 2016 | |
| 9th President of the Academia Sinica | |
| Assumed office 21 June 2016 | |
| Appointed by | Tsai Ing-wen |
| Vice President | Wang Fan-sen Andrew H. J. Wang Wang Yu Chin-Shing Huang Mei-Yin Chou Fu-Tong Liu Tang K. Tang |
| Preceded by | Wang Fan-sen (acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1958 (age 66–67) Kaohsiung, Taiwan |
| Education | National Taiwan University (BS) University of Wisconsin–Madison (PhD) |
| Spouse | Fu Chen |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Chemical engineering |
| Institutions | Eastman Kodak Texas A&M University University of California, Los Angeles Academia Sinica |
| Thesis | Modelling of Biochemical Reaction Networks (1987) |
| Doctoral advisor | Edwin N. Lightfoot |
Liao Chun-Chih (Chinese: 廖俊智; born 1958), also known by his English name James Liao, is a Taiwanese-American chemist. He is the Parsons Foundation Professor and Chair of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles, and is the co-founder and lead scientific advisor of Easel Biotechnologies, LLC. He was named the president of Academia Sinica, Taiwan, in June 2016.
He is best known for his work in metabolic engineering, synthetic biology, and bioenergy. Liao has been recognized for the biosynthesis and production of higher alcohols such as isobutanol from sugars, cellulose, waste protein, or carbon dioxide.