Elwyn Berlekamp has been Professor of Mathematics and of Electrical Engineering/Computer Science at UC Berkeley since 1971, half-time since 1983, and emeritus since 2002. He has also been active in several small companies in the sectors of computers-communications and finance. He was chairman of the Board of Trustees of MSRI from 1994–1998, and of the International Computer Science Institute from 2001–2003. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Other past service includes terms as president of the IEEE Information Theory Society, chairman of the Science Advisory Board for the Institute of Defense Analysis, the governing board of the American Mathematical Society, the Science Advisory Board for Livermore and Los Alamos National Laboratories, MIT Corporation Visiting Committees, and a trustee of two independent high schools.

Berlekamp has 12 patented inventions (now all public domain), mostly dealing with algorithms and devices for error-correction and synchronization. Some of his algorithms for decoding Reed-Solomon codes are widely used on compact discs; others are NASA standards for deep space communications. He has more than 100 publications, including two books on algebraic coding theory and six books on the mathematical theory of combinatorial games. He co-chaired the organizing committees of MSRI workshops in 1994 and 2000 whose published proceedings are entitled Games of No Chance and More Games of No Chance. Since 1999, he has co-written the "Puzzles Column" in the Emissary newsletter. His Problem 5 in the Fall 2012 issue sheds light on the cause of political gridlock.

Also see http://math.berkeley.edu/~berlek/