Portrait of Rui J.P. de Figueiredo
Rui J.P. de Figueiredo

Rui J.P. de Figueiredo, professor emeritus of electrical engineering and computer science, as well as mathematics, died July 22 in College Station, Texas, after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. He was 84. Best known for his pioneering contributions to the mathematical foundations of linear and nonlinear problems in pattern recognition, neural networks, and signal and image processing, de Figueiredo’s work was internationally recognized and rewarded. “During his 17 years as a faculty member in EECS, Rui played an important role in establishing the field of signal processing as a prominent research area at UCI,” said Michael Green, chair of the Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science. “In addition to being a preeminent scholar and researcher, Rui was a genuinely kind and cordial man. He will be missed by his friends and colleagues.”