Duke University - Trinity College of Arts & Sciences

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  • Amilcare M. Porporato

  • Center for Theoretical & Mathematical Sciences
  • 2459 CIEMAS
  • Phone: (919) 660-5511
  • Fax: (919) 660-5219

  • Overview

    Amilcare Porporato earned a Master's Degree in Civil Engineering (summa cum laude) in 1992. He obtained his Ph.D. in Hydraulic Engineering from Polytechnic of Turin, in 1996. Porporato was appointed Assistant Professor in the Department of Hydraulics of the Polytechnic of Turin in May 1995 and received tenure in January 1998. From November 2001 to August 2003 he was Associate Professor at the same Polytechnic. Since September 2003, he is an Associate Professor at the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering of Duke University.

    In June 1996, Porporato received the Arturo Parisatti International Price, awarded by the Istituto Veneto di Scienze, Lettere e Arti. He was Research Associate at the Texas A&M University (USA) in 1998 and Research Associate at Princeton University (USA), Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, from 1999 to 2001.

    His main research interests regard near-wall turbulence dynamics, nonlinear analysis of hydrologic time series, stochastic soil moisture dynamics and water balance, soil-atmosphere interaction, and ecohydrology.

    Since 2004, Porporato is Editor of Water Resources Research (AGU) and has also been referee and reviewer for various international journals and agencies. He has been chairman and convener of the Ecohydrology sessions of the AGU Spring Meeting in 2001 and 2002 and of the EGU in 2004-2006. Porporato has been part of the Italian research groups of Turbulence and Vorticity and of Climate, Soil and Vegetation Interaction, an advisor for the real-time forecasting in the Piedmont Region.

    Porporato's didactic experience comprises courses in Fluid Mechanics, Hydraulics, Hydraulic Constructions, Statistical and Physical Hydrology, Environmental Fluid Mechanics, Ecohydrology, Engineering Data Analysis, Nonlinear Dynamics and Stochastic Processes. He has also been the didactic coordinator for the International School "Hydroaid: Water for Development", co-organized by the Polytechnic of Turin and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

    Porporato is author of more than 80 peer-reviewed papers, several publications presented at national and international conferences and invited talks. He is also co-author of the book "Ecohydrology of water controlled ecosystems" (Cambridge Univ. Press, 2004) and edited the book "Dryland Ecohydrology" (Springer, 2005).

  • Other

    Honors and Awards
    • 1992, Magna Cum Laude distinction, Polytechnic of Turin, Italy.
    • 1996, Arturo Parisatti International Prize, awarded by the Istituto Veneto di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti, Venice (Italy), for the paper “Nonlinear analysis of river flow time sequences” by Amilcare Porporato and Luca Ridolfi.
    • 2007, Professor Senol Utku Award, for best graduate student peer reviewed paper "A theoretical analysis of nonlinearities and feedbacks in soil carbon and nitrogen cycles" in Soil Biology and Biogeochemistry written with S. Manzoni, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Duke University
    Professional and Service Activities
    • Editor of Water Resources Research (AGU) 2004-present.
    • Reviewer for various international journals and agencies.
    • Member of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) since 1999, European Geophysical Union (AGU), International Association of Hydrologic Sciences (IAHS).
    • Didactic Coordinator, Hydroaid: International School "Water for Development", co-organized by the Polytechnic of Turin and the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Turin, Italy, 2002-2003.
    • National Research Group for Studies on the Impact of climate, soil, and vegetation on flood dynamics, Italian Ministry of University and Scientific and Technologic Research, MURST. 2001-2004.
    • Scientific Coordinator, Project for the study the geomorphological evolution of the Pellice river. Polytechnic of Turin and the Province of Turin, Italy, 2001-2004
    • Chairman and Convener of the Ecohydrology sessions of the AGU Spring Meeting 2001 and 2002 and EGU 2004-06.
    • Scientific Coordinator, Project for real time flood forecasting for Piemonte rivers. Polytechnic of Turin and Piemonte Region, Italy.
    • Primary Investigator, National Research Group for Studies of Turbulence and Vorticity, Italian Ministry of University and Scientific and Technologic Research, MURST. 1996-2000.
    • Scientific Coordinator, Project for the study of a flood forecasting procedure for the Tanaro river, Polytechnic of Turin and City of Alba, Italy. 1996-1997.

  • Specialties

  • Research Description

    Near-wall turbulence, nonlinear analysis of hydrologic time series, stochastic soil moisture dynamics and water balance, soil-atmosphere interaction, and ecohydrology, complexity in the environment.