The Cultural Ambassador for Turkey in America

After her work at MIT as post-doctoral fellow in astrophysics from 1979 to 1982, Dr. Ayaslı worked at MIT Lincoln Laboratory from 1982 until 2006. Her work at the Laboratory focused on air defense and surface surveillance radar research and development, including foliage penetration (FOPEN) and ground penetration (GPEN) radar. Dr. Ayaslı and her team's work at Lincoln Laboratory led to the first successful experimental proof of the feasibility of an advanced coherent FOPEN radar system that would enable detection and tracking of targets in foliage. Recognizing the importance of keeping the scientific and user communities informed on the development of surface surveillance and FOPEN/GPEN technologies, she instituted a workshop dedicated to those technologies that was held annually at Lincoln Laboratory from 2001 to 2005.

Dr. Ayaslı served as a member of the IEEE Radar System Panel. She was a co-recipient of the IEEE/AESS 1996 M. Barry Carlton Award and was named an IEEE Fellow in 2002. She holds a BS degree in electrical engineering and MS and PhD degrees in physics from the Middle East Technical University in Ankara, Turkey. Married to Dr. Yalçın Ayaslı, she has three children, Ceylan, Orhan, Bahar.

Dr. Ayaslı is co-founding trustee of Turkish Cultural Foundation (TCF). Since 2006, her efforts focused on TCF, Turkish Coalition of America (TCA), ARMAGGAN - Unique by Design, and NAR Gourmet.