Li Shiying

Shih-Ying Lee or S. Y. Lee (Chinese: 李詩穎; pinyin: Lǐ Shīyǐng; April 30, 1918 – July 2, 2018) was an American inventor, engineer and physicist who was noted for his research and innovation in hydrodynamics-related technologies. Lee was also an entrepreneur and Professor Emeritus at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Biography

Lee was born in 1918 in Beijing, Republic of China. Lee attended Tsinghua University in 1936, obtained his bachelor's degree in civil engineering in 1940. Lee worked as a teaching assistant at Tsinghua for nearly two years and went to study in the United States in 1942. Lee obtained his PhD at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1945.

After graduation, Lee soon taught engineering at MIT; and was promoted from teaching assistant to full professor and finally Professor Emeritus after his retirement in 1974.

In 1985, Lee was elected Member of the United States National Academy of Engineering for his original research on control valve stability, for innovative dynamic measurement instrumentation, and for successful entrepreneurial commercialization of his inventions. Lee has been granted many US patents.

Lee founded or co-founded several companies specialized in process control and hydrodynamic instruments. Lee co-founded Dynisco Inc. and Setra Systems Inc. with his brother Y. T. Li and was Chairman of the company. He donated funds to establish the Shih-Ying Lee Scholarship at Tsinghua. He died in July 2018 at the age of 100.