Antonella Ferrara facts for kids

Antonella Ferrara is a brilliant Italian engineer and scientist, born in 1963. She is well-known for her important work in a field called control theory, especially something called "sliding mode control." This special type of engineering helps make sure machines and systems work exactly how we want them to, like guiding a robot or keeping a car stable.

Becoming an Engineer

Antonella Ferrara was born in Genoa, a city in Italy. She loved learning how things work, so she decided to study electrical engineering at the University of Genoa. She earned her first degree in 1987. Then, she continued her studies and completed her Ph.D. in 1992. A Ph.D. is a very high degree that shows someone is an expert in their chosen field.

Teaching and Research

After finishing her studies, Antonella Ferrara started teaching. She became an assistant professor at the University of Genoa in 1992. Later, in 1998, she moved to the University of Pavia to become an associate professor. By 2005, she was named a full professor of automatic control. This means she was a top expert in how to make systems control themselves.

At the University of Pavia, she first worked in the computer engineering department. In 2011, she helped create a new department. This new department focused on electrical, computer, and biomedical engineering.

Supporting Women in STEM

From 2013 to 2016, Professor Ferrara led an important group. This group was called the Women in Control Committee. It was part of the IEEE Control Systems Society. This committee helps encourage and support women who work in control systems engineering.

Special Honors

Professor Ferrara has received many special honors for her work. In 2020, she was named an IEEE Fellow. This is a very high honor given to people who have made big contributions to electrical and computer science. She was recognized for her work on sliding mode control theory.

She is also a Fellow of the International Federation of Automatic Control. This means she is recognized as a leading expert by a global organization for automatic control.

Books

Antonella Ferrara has also helped write important books about her field. These books share her knowledge with other engineers and students. Some of her books include:

• Freeway Traffic Modelling and Control (written with Simona Sacone and Silvia Siri, published in 2018)
• Advanced and Optimization Based Sliding Mode Control: Theory and Applications (written with Gian Paolo Incremona and Michele Cucuzella, published in 2019)