Houston, May 30 -- ndian-origin professor Ganesh Thakur has been named president of the Texas Academy of Medicine, Engineering, Science and Technology (TAMEST), becoming the first University of Houston (UH) faculty member to hold the position.

Mr Thakur, a professor of petroleum engineering at UH's Cullen College of Engineering, began his term in February, the university said in a release. He aims to raise the visibility of UH's research and promote collaboration across top institutions in Texas.

"TAMEST brings together top minds from UH, UT Austin, Texas A&M, and others to tackle real-world challenges," Mr Thakur said.

TAMEST includes 350 members of the US National Academies and eight Nobel laureates. Its next annual conference, fo...