Richard Powers received his Master of Arts from the University of Illinois in 1980 and his Bachelor of Arts, Summa Cum Laude in 1978. He is a professor in the Department of English and a full-time member of the Beckman Institute Cognitive Neuroscience group.
Honors: Ambassador Book Award, 2004; W. H. Smith Literary Award, 2003 (Great Britain); Finalist, National Book Critics Circle Award, 2003, 1995, 1991, 1985; Dos Passos Prize For Literature, Longwood University, 2003; Pushcart Prize, 2003; Best Books of 2003: Chicago Tribune, Christian Science Monitor, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Newsday, London Evening Standard, Time Out (London), San Jose Mercury News; New York Times Notable Book, 2003, 2000, 1998, 1995, 1991; Author of the Year, Illinois Association of Teachers of English, 2001; Corrington Award for Literary Excellence, Centenary College, 2001; Elected Fellow, Center for Advanced Study, University of Illinois, 2000; Vursell Award, American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, 2000; Lannan Literary Award, 1999; James Fenimore Cooper Prize, American Society of Historians, 1999; Elected Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, 1998; Business Week Best Business Books of 1998; Swanlund Professorship, University of Illinois, 1996; Finalist, National Book Award, 1993; Time Magazine Book of the Year, 1991; MacArthur Fellowship, 1989; PEN/Hemingway Special Citation, 1985; Rosenthal Award of American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, 1985.
