Short Biography

Graduated from Istanbul Technical University with M.Sc. degree in Structural Engineering in 1959.

Completed a Ph.D program in Applied Sciences at the Faculty of Science, Sorbonne University (Paris, France) between 1961-1965.

Worked as an engineer in Switzerland, France and the United States (1959-1967), including a research engineering position at the Secretariat of the Comite Euro-International du Beton (C.E.B.) in Paris (1962-1965).

Joined the Engineering Faculty of the Middle East Technical University in Ankara, Turkey, (1967 and on), continuing all the same with the international consultancy, and lecturing on part time basis at various other institutions in Turkey and abroad.

Elected Chairman of the Civil Engineering Department of the Middle East Technical University (1971-1972).

Elected as Vice President of Turkish Chamber of Civil Engineers for the period 1973-1975.

Acted as Deputy Minister for the Turkish Ministry of Municipal Governments and Local Authorities (1978-1980).

Awards and International Scientific Achievements

Letter of commendation by President R. Nixon, 1971, for contribution to the Earthquake Science and Engineering.

Attribution of the position of Scientific co-Director of the 1973 July NATO-Izmir Summer School on Engineering Seismology and Earthquake Engineering.

Attribution of the award of best technical publication for the year of 1989 from Turkish Union of Contractors in Prefabrication.

Attribution of the position of Scientific co-Director of NSF backed 1992 May International Workshop on "Engineering Preservation of Historic Buildings", in Istanbul.

Attribution of the special 1993 award for research work on "Quality Control and Building Insurance Systems" from the Association of Turkish Consulting Engineers and Architects; a component of FIDIC.

Particular invitations as keynote reporter or lecturer to NATO Summer Schools; to CIB International Symposiums; to Council of Europe's Conferences; to scientific workshops for the planning of reconstruction operations in Disastered and War-Damaged Areas in Iran and others, as well to various international missions in seismic regions in Asian and North African Countries.

Publications

Author and co-author and/or editor of 16 books in Turkish and English.

Published about 200 articles, research and survey reports and papers in English, French, Spanish, Catalan, Persian and Turkish.

Having a large area of interest, his publications also extended on a wide variety of topics, including General Structural Engineering and Structural Dynamics in coordination with the Investigation of Seismic Effects on Structures, and more particularly on Historic Monuments, Bridges and Buildings.

On the other hand, the topics related to such advanced technologies as precasting, prestressing and -especially post-tensioning-, overall constructional planning at company and countrywide construction sector levels, technology transfer and exchange, interaction between science, technology and art, etc. were covered.

Moreover, published about 400 articles in daily press and monthly art-culture magazines in Turkish and in French, mainly related to art-technology interaction, process of artistic creation in music and in plastic arts, and also in socio-cultural behavior and reactions at local, national and worldwide levels.

Specialized Areas

Focused on reinforced and prestressed (especially post-tensioned) structural systems, slab components of such systems, bridges and large-scale buildings were more intensely investigated.

Involved in application of general structural theory and advanced analysis methods at various types of structures.

Worked on seismic problems including structural behavior, conceptual understanding and design aspects, with inclusion of such special topics as protection of historic monuments and structures in seismic zones, going into the detail of assessment and restoration.

Actively participated to studies on advanced construction techniques for buildings and bridges, rationalized technical approaches, prefabrication, etc.

Contributed to realization of large sized single-story buildings with voluminous spaces and also some tall buildings with reinforced concrete skeletons, wide-spanning bridges and metro systems with large stations achieved by Turkish construction sector in Turkey and abroad.

Intensified his technical and intellectual interest on alliance between architectural imagination for special building spaces with their structural systems, lecturing and also publishing on the topic.

Contact

E-mail:
        karaesmn@metu.edu.tr
        (or) engin@metu.edu.tr
Phones:
        Office 90-312-2105449
        Home 90-312-2130405 or 2157891 (Ankara)
        90-212-2453632 or 2436299 (Istanbul)
Fax:
        Office 90-312-2101262
Postal Address:
        Middle East Technical University (METU)
        06531 Ankara
        Türkiye