12 Facts About Chang-Lin Tien

Chang-Lin Tien was a Taiwanese-American academic, mechanical engineer, and university administrator.

Chang-Lin Tien was the seventh chancellor of the University of California, Berkeley, and in that capacity was the first person of Asian descent to head a major research university in the United States.

Chang-Lin Tien joined UC Berkeley faculty as an assistant professor of mechanical engineering in 1959, and three years later, at the age of 26, became the youngest professor ever to be honored with UC Berkeley's Distinguished Teaching Award.

Chang-Lin Tien was promoted to full professor in 1968 and served as the chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering from 1974 to 1981.

In 1999, Chang-Lin Tien received the prestigious title of "University Professor".

Chang-Lin Tien was an expert in thermal science and researched on thermal radiation, thermal insulation, microscale thermal phenomena, fluid flow, phase-change energy transfer, heat pipes, reactor safety, cryogenics, and fire phenomena, authoring more than 300 research journal and monograph articles, 16 edited volumes, and one book.

In December 1996, President Bill Clinton put him on the shortlist of candidates for United States Secretary of Energy, but Chang-Lin Tien was removed after the Chinese campaign finance scandal made headlines; the unsealed Federal Bureau of Investigation file for Chang-Lin Tien showed he had been investigated as a potential foreign agent as early as 1973, but no evidence ever was found to support this assumption.

Chang-Lin Tien was commonly seen picking up trash in Sproul Plaza, appearing in the library in the middle of the night during finals week, or checking up on students in the residence halls and classrooms.

Chang-Lin Tien was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2000 and suffered a stroke during surgery to treat it, prompting his resignation in 2001.

Chang-Lin Tien was a member of the National Academy of Engineering, the Academia Sinica, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Chang-Lin Tien died in Redwood City, California at the age of 67.

Chang-Lin Tien was survived by his wife Di-Hwa; his son Norman Tien, currently Taikoo Professor of Engineering and Chair Professor of Microsystems Technology at The University of Hong Kong, and Dean of Faculty of Engineering at HKU from June 2012 to May 2018; and daughters Christine Tien, Stockton's former deputy city manager; and Dr Phyllis Tien, a UC San Francisco physician.