James S. Thorp was the head of the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Virginia Tech.

Along with fellow Virginia Tech professor Arun G. Phadke

Arun G. Phadke

Dr. Arun Phadke is a University Distinguished Professor emeritus in the Department of Electrical Engineering at Virginia Tech.Along with James Thorp, head of the Bradley Department of Electrical Engineering at Virginia Tech, Phadke received The Franklin Institute's 2008 Benjamin Franklin Medal in...

, Thorp received The Franklin Institute's 2008 Benjamin Franklin Medal in Electrical Engineering http://www.fi.edu/franklinawards/08/laureate_bf_electricaleng-phadke-thorp.html for their contributions to the power industry, particularly microprocessor controllers in electric power systems that have significantly decreased the occurrence and duration of power blackouts.