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Biography

Leandra Vicci was a lecturer in the Department of Computer Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Physics at Antioch College in 1964 and became a practicing engineer in both industry and academia. She joined the UNC-Chapel Hill computer science faculty in 1981 to found and direct the Microelectronic Systems Laboratory, later renamed the Applied Engineering Laboratory to reflect its new mission.

Her research interests were exploring solutions of technological problems in the design of experimental systems for her collaborators in the Physical and Biological sciences, focusing in particular on innovations enabling previously inaccessible experimental methods. She was also interested in developing theoretical biophysical models grounded on physical first principles. She was the inventor of Salphasic Clock distribution, a method for circumventing the limitations of the speed of light on the distribution of clock signals to globally synchronous systems. In 1996, Ms. Vicci received both the UNC-Chapel Hill Chancellor’s Award, and the North Carolina Governor’s Award for innovation. She was a member of ACM and IEEE.

On September 13, 2019, the Department of Computer Science held a memorial event to honor the memory of Leandra. The event was attended by many current and former department personnel, as well as collaborators and friends. The memorial was recorded and can be viewed on the department’s YouTube channel.