Lawrence Wein

Research Statement

Lawrence Wein has three main research interests: manufacturing, health care, and homeland security. Some of his scheduling research has been applied widely in the semiconductor industry. He has used mathematics to analyze treatment protocols for patients with HIV, cancer, and Alzheimer’s disease; the national transplant waiting list for kidneys; the selection of strains to include in the annual influenza vaccine and the design of proteins. His homeland security work concerns bioterrorism and border issues, and some of his recommendations have been adopted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. His more recent work focuses on humanitarian issues, such as food allocation policies for malnutritioned children and improved verification policies for India's biometric identification program.

Bio

Professor Wein received his PhD in Operations Research from Stanford in 1988 and has taught the core MBA course in operations management throughout his entire career, both at MIT’s Sloan School of Management from 1988 to 2002, where he was the DEC Leaders for Manufacturing Professor of Management Science, and at Stanford since 2002, where he is currently the Jeffrey S. Skoll Professor; Professor of Management Science. He also is a Senior Fellow at Stanford’s Center for International Security and Cooperation.

His main research interests are in manufacturing, health care, and homeland security. In all three areas, he has published widely and impacted practice. His HIV work on drug-switching policies led to a successful multicenter clinical trial. His smallpox work influenced the George W. Bush administration’s post-attack vaccination policy; his anthrax work led to plans in Washington, D.C., to use postal workers to distribute antibiotics after a large attack; and his testimony before a congressional committee on his biometric analysis of the US-VISIT Program was instrumental in the switch from a two-finger to a ten-finger system. He has won several research awards and was Editor-in-Chief of Operations Research from 2000 to 2005. 

He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering.

Academic Degrees

• PhD, Stanford University, 1988
• MS, Stanford University, 1985
• MS, Stanford University, 1980
• BS, Cornell University, 1979

Academic Appointments

• Senior Fellow (by courtesy), Freeman-Institute for International Studies, 2003-present
• Lacob Family Faculty Fellow, 2014-2015
• Stanford GSB Trust Faculty Fellow, 2013-2014
• Winnick Family Faculty Fellow, 2009-2010
• Paul E. Holden Professor of Management Science, 2003-2010
• Spence Faculty Fellow, 2005-2006
• At Stanford University since 2002
• Professor, Sloan School of Management, M.I.T., 1988-2001

Professional Experience

• Senior Operations Research Analyst, W.R. Grace and Company, 1981-1982

Awards and Honors

• Koopman Prize, INFORMS, 2002
• Erlang Prize, INFORMS, 1993
• Laudatio, Production and Operations Management, 2016

Teaching

Degree Courses

2018-19

OIT 271: Operations - Accelerated

This course, which is an accelerated version of OIT 262 (Operations), focuses on basic managerial issues arising in the operations of both manufacturing and service industries, and on strategic issues arising in global supply chains. The...

2017-18

OIT 271: Operations - Accelerated

This course, which is an accelerated version of OIT 262 (Operations), focuses on basic managerial issues arising in the operations of both manufacturing and service industries, and on strategic issues arising in global supply chains. The...

OIT 664: Asymptotics in Operations Management

This course provides an overview of asymptotic models and methods used in various areas of operations management. It includes traditional heavy traffic asymptotics for queueing networks, the Halfin-Whitt regime, the supermarket model, inventory...

In the Media

The Sexual Assault Problem We Can't Afford To Ignore

CNN Op-Ed, March 22, 2018

One Way to Reduce Jail Populatiopns

International New York Times Op-Ed, October 23, 2015

Gimme Shelter: The Need for a Contemporary Civil Defense Program

Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, April 28, 2010

A Threat in Every Port

The New York Times Op-Ed, June 15, 2009

Counting the Walking Wounded

The New York Times Op-Ed, January 25, 2009

Neither Snow, Nor Rain, Nor Anthrax ...

The New York Times Op-Ed, October 12, 2008

Our Town: Imagining the Worst

Palo Alto Weekly, April 29, 2006

Face Facts

The New York Times Op-Ed, October 25, 2006

Censoring Science Won't Make Us Any Safer

Washington Post, July 26, 2005

Got Toxic Milk?

New York Times, June 30, 2005

Think Inside the Box

The New York Times, November 29, 2005

Terrorist in the Milk Barn

The Food Chain Show, July 23, 2005

Biosecurity

NPR, July 1, 2005

2-Fingerprint Border ID System Called Inadequate

Washington Post, October 19, 2004

House Select Homeland Security Subcommittee on Infrastructure and Border Security and Subcommittee on Intelligence and Counterterrorism Hold Joint Hearing on Disrupting Terrorist Travel

Congressional Hearings, September 30, 2004

Unready for Anthrax

Washington Post, July 28, 2003

Insights by Stanford Business

writtenA Moral And Economic Argument For Testing Rape Kits

February 16, 2018

More than 400,000 sexual assault kits languish in storage. New research shows the impact of analyzing them.

writtenHow to Solve More Gun Crimes Without Spending More Money

June 1, 2017

Simple tweaks to how police process bullet casings could dramatically improve their forensic data.

writtenA Look Back at 2016

December 19, 2016

Read 10 Stanford Business stories from the past year, including pieces on work-life balance, power, and management.

writtenEquity: The Recommended List

August 30, 2016

Stanford GSB professors suggest articles and books related to the concept of “equity.”

writtenHow to Fix Overcrowded Jails

March 18, 2016

Solving the problem means putting convicted felons on the street. A scholar explains why that’s the right move.

writtenRisk: The Recommended List

December 15, 2014

Learn more about risk and other related topics.

writtenFive Things You Should Know About Risk

December 11, 2014

From outer space to the boardroom, risk is all around us.

writtenLawrence Wein: Five Disaster Scenarios — and What We Learn From Them

October 16, 2014

A professor tackles the most effective responses to some of the world’s most dangerous risks.

writtenHow to Avoid a Space Catastrophe

August 28, 2014

Two scholars say the likelihood of a major space junk collision is low for now, but space-faring nations need to take responsibility for ensuring it remains so.

writtenThink ID Theft Is a Problem Here? Try Protecting One Billion People

May 1, 2014

A Stanford professor scrutinizes India’s epic biometric program.

writtenLawrence Wein: Childhood Obesity Screening May Not Be That Useful

June 4, 2013

A new study explains why.

writtenThe Tough Math Behind Humanitarian Aid

March 4, 2013

A new study finds that a different approach to food-relief efforts in the developing world could save more lives.

writtenA Study Calls for Sheltering-in-Place in the Event of Nuclear Attack

September 8, 2010

A scholar looks at what to do in the event of a nuclear detonation.

writtenLawrence Wein: A Proposal to Slow the Buildup of Space Junk

March 1, 2009

Space debris is a big problem. Here's how to solve it.

writtenBlueprint Proposed for Wiping Out Disease-bearing Mosquitoes

January 1, 2007

Research explains how to eliminate the danger of dengue fever and other mosquito-borne diseases.

writtenCaution About a Bioterror Attack on the U.S. Milk Supply

June 1, 2005

A scholar imagines the worst — and puts together mathematical models to help determine how best to prepare for it.

writtenA Statistical Solution to Testing the Blood Supply for HIV

September 1, 1997

A Stanford GSB scholar devises an advanced model that allows inexpensive, accurate testing by pooling blood samples.