known for his fundamental insights into statistical inference. After studying mathematics at Andhra U and statistics at Calcutta U, in 1944 Rao joined the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) (working under Mahalanobis), where he worked on the Cramér–Rao inequality (see Fisher information), which he allegedly proved overnight in response to a student inquiry, and on what is now known as the Rao–Blackwell theorem. Mahalanobis sent Rao to Cambridge U to analyse data under the guidance of Sir Ronald Fisher. On obtaining his PhD in 1948, Rao returned to the ISI first as head of the research section and subsequently as Director. Basu and Varadhan were two of his research students at the ISI. In 1982 Rao emigrated to the USA, first to U Pittsburgh, then, in 1990, to Penn State U as its founding Director of the Center for Multivariate Analysis. He has been President of the IBS (1974), the IMS (1977), and the International Statistical Institute (1982). He is an Honorary Life Member of the latter. He was the Wald Lecturer of the IMS in 1975. He was elected FRS in 1967 and is a Fellow of the AAAS. The RSS awarded him its Guy Medal in Silver in 1965, and in Gold in 2011. He was the recipient of the COPSS Fisher Lectureship in 1979, the Wilks Award of the ASA in 1989, and the Parzen Prize in 2000. He was elected an Honorary Fellow of the RSS in 1969, an Honorary Life Member of the IBS in 1985, and member of the NAS in 1995. He was awarded the National Medal of Science in 2002.

http://www.amstat.org/about/statisticiansinhistory/index.cfm?fuseaction=biosinfo&BioID=13 Fuller biography and photograph.