Dr. George Gazetas is Emeritus Professor of Geotechnical Engineering at the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA) in which he served as Professor for 30 years, following a 15-year academic career in the US after completing his graduate studies at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he received his PhD in Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering.

His main research interests are focused on the dynamic response of footings, piles and caissons; the seismic response of earth dams and quay-walls; soil amplification of seismic waves; and soil–structure interaction under static and seismic excitation.

Much of his research has been inspired by observations after destructive earthquakes. An active lecturer, he has been the keynote speaker in many international conferences.

He is the author of significant journal publications, achieving an h-index of 84, the highest among all Greek civil engineers, and the highest worldwide in Soil Dynamics.

He is a member of the Technical Committee for the revision of Eurocode 8, and has served as President of both the Greek Committee of Soil Mechanics & Geotechnical Engineering and the Hellenic Association of Earthquake Engineering.

He has served as a consultant on major dynamic geotechnical projects worldwide and has been the recipient of several awards for his research including the prestigious European Research Council’s Ideas Advanced Grant award.

An accomplished lecturer, and was honored as the 59th Rankin Lecturer in 2019 and designated as a GeoLegend by ASCE’s Geotechnical Institute in the GeoStrata Magazine in 2022.

Education:

PhD, Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

MS, Civil Engineering (Geotechnical), Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Academic Positions:

1985-Present, Professor National Technical University of Athens, Greece

1989-1993, Professor, State University of New York at Buffalo, NY, U.S.A

1981-1985, Associate Professor, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), Troy, NY, U.S.A

1978-1981, Assistant Prof. Case Western Reserve University, Ohio, U.S.A

- Rio-Antirrio Bridge (Charilaos Trikoupis Bridge), Gulf of Corinth, Greece

- Diabolo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant, Avila Beach, CA

- Brunsbüttel nuclear Power Plant, Brunsbüttel, Germany

- Olympic Stadium Opening Ceremony Shaft, Athens, Greece

- Queensboro Bridge, New York, NY

- Williamsburg Bridge, New York, NY

- Tagus River Bridge (25 de Abril Bridge), Lisbon, Portugal

- Messochora CFR Dam, Trikala, Greece

- Ohba-Ohashi Bridge, Fujisawa City, Japan

- Named GeoLegend by ASCE’s Geotechnical Institute, featured in GEOSTRATA magazine, Aug/Sept issue 2022

- T. K. Hsieh Award 2020 , Institution of Civil Engineers, London

- The 59th Rankine Lecturer, Institution of Civil Engineers, London, 2019

- The 1st Michele Maugeri Lecturer, Int. Conference of Earthquake Geotechnical Engineering, Rome, 2019

- The 17th Kenneth Lee Lecturer, ASCE, Los Angeles, 2019

- The 4th “Ishihara” Lecturer, International Society of Soil Mechanics & Geotechnical Engineering, 2013

- T. K. Hsieh Award 2009, Institution of Civil Engineers, London

- The “Coulomb” 2009 Lecturer, French Association of Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering

- Recipient of the prestigious European Research Council’s [ERC] Idea ―Advanced Grant, 2008–2013

- Distinguished Lecture Award of the Japanese Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE), 2004

- T. K. Hsieh Award 1997, Institution of Civil Engineers, London

- 1st Shamsher Prakash Research Award (S. Prakash Research Foundation), 1990

- Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prize, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), 1988

- James Croes Medal, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), 1985

- Alfred Noble Prize, jointly from four US Engineering Societies: ASCE, ASME, AIM, IEEE, 1982

- ASCE’s Niagara section Awards for best paper in the Geotechnical Journal for 1982, 1983, 1984

- Eurocode 8, Part. 5 - Member of the Drafting Panel for the chapter on soil-structure interaction
and foundations for the Commission of the European Communities seismic code.

- EAK 2000 - Member of the Drafting and Amendment Panels of New Greek Aseismic Code.

- NEHRP, FEMA - Member of the early drafting panel on foundations for “Recommended Provisions for Seismic Regulations”, FEMA, U.S.A.

- Gazetas G., "Analysis of Machine Foundation Vibrations: State-of-the-Art" International Journal of Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, Vol. 2, No. 1, 1983. (Keynote Lecture at the 1st International Conference on Soil Dynamics & Earthquake Engineering, 1982.)

- Mylonakis G., Gazetas G., “Seismic Soil-Structure Interaction: Beneficial or Detrimental?”, Journal of Earthquake Engineering, Vol. 4, p.p. 277-301, 2000.

- Gazetas, G., 1991, “Formulas and Charts for Impedances of Surface and Embedded Foundations,” Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, V. 117, No. 9, pp. 1363-1381.

- Makris N., Gazetas G., "Dynamic Soil-Pile Interaction. Part II. Lateral and Seismic Response," Earthquake Engineering & Structural Dynamics, Vol. 21, No. 2, pp. 145-162, 1992.

- Dobry, R., and Gazetas, G. J., 1988, “Simple Method for Dynamic Stiffness and Damping of Floating Pile Groups,” Géotechnique, V. 38, No. 4, pp. 557-574.

- Nikolaou S., Mylonakis G., Gazetas G., Tazoh T., “Kinematic Pile Bending during Earthquakes: Analysis and Field Measurements”, Géotechnique, Vol. 51, pp. 425-440, 2001.

- Gazetas, G.; Fan, K.; Kaynia, A.; and Kausel, E., 1991, “Dynamic Interaction Factors for Floating Pile Groups,” Journal of the Geotechnical Engineering Division, V. 117, No. 10, pp. 153 1-1548.

- Fan K., Gazetas G., Kaynia A., Kausel, E., Ahmad, S. "Kinematic Seismic Response of Single Piles and Pile Groups," Journal of Geotechnical Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 117, No. 12, pp. 1531-1548, 1991.