Born in Bangalore, India to a family of 5 brothers and 3 sisters, Professor Rao attended Central College (now Bangalore University) and the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore. As a young man, he distinguished himself by earning 1st rank in his B.Sc. examination among 60,000 candidates in Mysore State. After completing a post-graduate diploma course at the I.I.Sc., he then left home to join the Central Electronics Engineering Research Institute (CEERI) in Pilani, Rajastan, India.
He moved to the US in 1959 to attend the University of California at Berkeley, where he earned his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical Engineering. In 1966, he joined Fairchild Semiconductor and went on to serve as a Professor of Electrical Engineering at San Jose State University, where he taught and advised undergraduate and graduate students for over three decades. He also held visiting professor appointments at several universities including Stanford University and Kyoto University in Kyoto, Japan.
Professor Rao was a prominent member of the San Francisco Bay Area’s Indian community, having served as President of Kannada Koota of Northern California and President of South India Fine Arts of Northern California in the 1980’s. During this time, he hosted performances by several renowned artists from India and the US. After retiring from San Jose State University in 2003, he enjoyed playing golf, exercising and spending time with his family in the Bay Area and in India.
He is survived by his wife, Dr. Sarala Rao of Los Altos Hills, son Gopal Rao of San Francisco, daughter Gowri Grewal, son-in-law Paul Grewal, and grandchildren Calvin & Sarina Grewal, all of Palo Alto. In India, Professor Rao leaves behind his three brothers, R. Ananthaswamy, R. Ramachandra and R. Sundaramoorthy and two sisters, Leela Ramakrishniah and Rajeshwari Krishamoorthy. He was preceded in death by his sister Smt. Venkatalakshamma Srikantiah of Mysore and brothers Wg. Cdr. R. Nagaraja Rao and R. Shankara of Bangalore.
The Hindu funeral ceremony was held on April 24, 2010 and the Vaikunta ceremony will be celebrated on May 4, 2010. There will be a memorial service for friends and family on May 8, 2010.
