Member Prizes
Hawking, Kennedy, O’Connor, Poitier, and Rowley Named 2009 Medal
of Freedom Recipients
Five Academy Members have been named recipients of America’s highest civilian honor,
the Medal of Freedom, which is awarded to “individuals who make an especially meritorious
contribution to the security or national interests of the United States, world peace,
cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.” They are:
- Stephen Hawking, the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge
University and author of three popular science books, including the bestselling
A Brief History of Time, whose “persistence and dedication has unlocked new
pathways of discovery and inspired everyday citizens.”
- Edward M. Kennedy, a United States Senator for 46 years, who
“has dedicated his career to fighting for equal opportunity, fairness and justice
for all Americans.”
- Sandra Day O’Connor, the first woman to sit on the United States
Supreme Court, serving until her retirement in 2006, who has received numerous awards
“for her outstanding achievements and public service.”
- Sidney Poitier, “a groundbreaking actor” who became the top black
movie star in the 1950s and 1960s and is the first African American to be nominated
and win a Best Actor Academy Award.
- Janet Davison Rowley, the Blum Riese Distinguished Service Professor
of Medicine, Molecular Genetics & Cell Biology and Human Genetics at The University
of Chicago, who is “internationally renowned for her studies of chromosome abnormalities
in human leukemia and lymphoma, which have led to dramatically improved survival
rates for previously incurable cancers and the development of targeted therapies.”
 |
Husband-and-Wife Biologists Win Kyoto Prize
Princeton University biologists Peter Raymond Grant and Barbara Rosemary Grant have received the 2009 Kyoto Prize for their “enormous contributions to evolutionary biology and ecology, and … profound influence on the general public through demonstrating evolution by natural selection in the field.” The award, presented by the Inamori Foundation of Japan, cites their field studies on Darwin’s finches on the Galapagos Islands, which demonstrated that the morphology and behavior of organisms are altered rapidly by natural selection in response to environmental changes. The Grants, who were both elected Academy Fellows in 1997, are the first husband-and-wife team to win the award, which honors those who have contributed significantly to humankind’s scientific, cultural, and spiritual development.
Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney Named To Kluge Center's Chair of Modern
Culture
Anthropologist Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney (University of Wisconsin) has been named
to the John
W. Kluge Center’s Chair of Modern Culture. The appointment was made by James
H. Billington, Librarian of Congress and Fellow of the American Academy.
During her tenure, Ohnuki-Tierney, the William F. Vilas Professor of Anthropology
at the University of Wisconsin, will be exploring theories about the role of symbolism
and folk aesthetic in Japan’s history and culture and will examine the importance
of symbolism in political and military affairs. She was elected a Fellow of the
American Academy in 1999.
Meserve to Receive AAAS Abelson Award
The American Association
for the Advancement of Science will present Richard A. Meserve (Carnegie Institution for Science) the 2008 Philip Hauge
Abelson Award for “advancing and promoting the use of science in the service of
the public interest, and for exceptional contributions to the institutions [he has]
served, to the scientific community at large, and to the general public, both in
the U.S. and abroad.” Elected a Fellow of the American Academy in 1994, Meserve
is an active member and serves on its Council and Trust. A lawyer and physicist,
he is president of the Carnegie Institution for Science and chairman of the International
Nuclear Safety Group, and has served as chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission from 1999 to 2003.
Neal Lane Receives NAS Public Welfare Medal
Academy Fellow and Council member Neal Lane (Rice University) has been selected
to receive the National Academy of Sciences’ most prestigious award, the Public Welfare Medal, in honor of his public service and leadership
in support of science and technology. The NAS presents this award annually in recognition
of “extraordinary use of science for the public good.” Lane’s service to the nation
includes his work at the White House as Assistant to the President and Director
of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, and as Director of the National
Science Foundation. An active participant in the affairs of the American Academy,
Lane cochairs the
Initiative for Science, Engineering, and Technology and served on the ARISE Committee.
Brown Awarded Kluge Prize
Academy Fellow Peter Robert Lamont Brown (Princeton University) is one of
two recipients of the 2008 Kluge Prize for Lifetime Achievement in the Study of
Humanity. The $1 million prize, endowed by Library of Congress benefactor John W.
Kluge, is shared with historian Romila Thapar and recognizes scholars for their
deep and sustained intellectual accomplishments in the study of humanity that have
an impact beyond narrow academic disciplines. Brown was honored for bringing conceptual
coherence to the field of late antiquity and looking anew at the end of the Roman
Empire, the emergence of Christianity, and the rise of Islam within and beyond the
Mediterranean world.
Academy Members Win 2008 Nobel Prize
Three Academy Fellows were awarded the 2008 Nobel Prize by the Royal Swedish Academy
of Sciences. The prizes went to:
- Yoichiro Nambu (University of Chicago) for physics
- Martin Chalfie (Columbia University) for chemistry
- Roger Y. Tsien (University of California, San Diego) for chemistry
The Academy recognized Nambu "for the discovery of the mechanism of spontaneous
broken symmetry in subatomic physics." It stated: “As early as 1960, Yoichiro Nambu
formulated his mathematical description of spontaneous broken symmetry in elementary
particle physics. Spontaneous broken symmetry conceals nature's order under an apparently
jumbled surface. It has proved to be extremely useful, and Nambu's theories permeate
the Standard Model of elementary particle physics. The Model unifies the smallest
building blocks of all matter and three of nature's four forces in one single theory.”
Chalfie and Tsien, along with Osamu Shimomura (Marine Biological Laboratory and
Boston University Medical School), were recognized for their work with the brightly
glowing green fluorescent protein, GFP, first observed in the jellyfish, Aequorea
victoria in 1962. According to the announcement: “Since then, this protein
has become one of the most important tools used in contemporary bioscience. With
the aid of GFP, researchers have developed ways to watch processes that were previously
invisible, such as the development of nerve cells in the brain or how cancer cells
spread. This year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry rewards the initial discovery of GFP
and a series of important developments which have led to its use as a tagging tool
in bioscience.”
Chalfie “demonstrated the value of GFP as a luminous genetic tag for various biological
phenomena. In one of his first experiments, he colored six individual cells in the
transparent roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans with the aid of GFP.”
Tsien “contributed to our general understanding of how GFP fluoresces. He also extended
the color palette beyond green allowing researchers to give various proteins and
cells different colors. This enables scientists to follow several different biological
processes at the same time.”
Fellows Awarded National Medal of Science and Technology
Six Fellows are recipients of the 2007 National Medal of Science and another has
been awarded the National Medal of Technology and Innovation. At a White House ceremony,
President George W. Bush awarded the National Medals of Science to:
- Mostafa El-Sayed (Georgia Institute of Technology) “for his seminal
contributions to our understanding of the electronic and optical properties of nano-materials
and to their applications in nano-catalysis and nano-medicine; his humanitarian
efforts in promoting the exchange of ideas; and his role in developing the scientific
leadership of tomorrow.”
- Leonard Kleinrock (University of California, Los Angeles) “for
his fundamental contributions to the mathematical theory of modern data networks,
and for the functional specification of packet switching, which is the foundation
of Internet technology. His mentoring of generations of students has led to the
commercialization of technologies that have transformed the world.”
- Robert Lefkowitz (Duke University) “for his discovery of the
seven transmembrane receptors, deemed the largest, most versatile, and most therapeutically
accessible receptor signaling system, and for describing the general mechanism of
their regulation, influencing all fields of medical practice.”
- Bert W. O'Malley (Baylor College of Medicine) “for his pioneering
work on the molecular mechanisms of steroid hormone action and hormone receptors
and coactivators, which has had a profound impact on our knowledge of steroid hormones
in normal development and in diseases, including cancer.”
- Charles P. Slichter (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
“for establishing nuclear magnetic resonance as a powerful tool to reveal the fundamental
molecular properties of liquids and solids. His inspired teaching has led generations
of physicists and chemists to develop a host of modern technologies in condensed
matter physics, chemistry, biology, and medicine.”
- Andrew J. Viterbi (University of Southern California) “for his
development of the maximum-likelihood algorithm for convolutional coding, known
as the "Viterbi algorithm," and for his contributions to Code Division Multiple
Access (CDMA) wireless technology that transformed the theory and practice of digital
communications.”
President Bush presented the National Medal of Technology and Innovation to:
- Paul Baran (Novo Ventures, Inc.), “whose invention of packet switching,
provided the underlying technology that made the Internet possible.”
Falkow Receives Lasker Award
Stanley Flakow (Stanford University) was named recipient of the Lasker~Koshland
Special Achievement Award in Medical Science “for a 51-year career as one of the
great microbe hunters of all time — he discovered the molecular nature of antibiotic
resistance, revolutionized the way we think about how pathogens cause disease, and
mentored more than 100 students, many of whom are now distinguished leaders in the
fields of microbiology and infectious diseases.”
Greenstein Honored with Heinz Award
Robert Greenstein (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities) has received the
Heinz Award for Public Policy “for his work to represent the interests of low- and
middle-income American on federal budget issues.”
Academy Members Win Inaugural Kavli Prizes
Six of the seven pioneering scientists in the fields of nanoscience, neuroscience
and astrophysics who were named the first recipients of the million-dollar Kavli
prizes are members of the Academy. The Kavli Prize is named after and funded by
the entrepreneur, philanthropist and Academy Fellow Fred Kavli. The biannual awards
are a partnership between the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, The Kavli
Foundation, and the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research.
Winners of the 2008 Kavli Prizes include:
- Astrophysics: Maarten Schmidt, California Institute of
Technology and Donald Lynden-Bell, Cambridge University, both of whose work
underpins our understanding of quasars.
- Nanoscience: Louis E. Brus, Columbia University for discoveries
of colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals, also known as quantum dots, and carbon
nanotubes.
- Neuroscience: Pasko Rakic, Yale University School of Medicine,
Thomas Jessell, Columbia University, and Sten Grillner, Karolinska
Institute, who collectively have deciphered the basic mechanisms that govern the
development and functioning of the networks of cells in the brain and spinal cord.
Albany Medical Center Prize Awarded to Two Fellows
Academy Fellows Elizabeth Blackburn, Morris Herzstein Professor
of Biology and Physiology at the University of California, San Francisco, and
Joan Steitz, Sterling Professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry
at Yale University, have been named co-recipients of the 2008 Albany Medical Center
Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research. They are the first women scientists to
receive the prize, and they will share its $500,000 award, America’s largest prize
in medicine. Blackburn and Steitz were recognized for their groundbreaking molecular-biology
research, which could lead to more effective treatments for a variety of diseases.
Four Academy Fellows Named 2008 Guggenheim Fellows
The four Fellows and their project titles are:
- Sheldon Danzinger, H. J. Meyer Distinguished University Professor
of Public Policy, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, University of Michigan:
Four decades of antipoverty policies.
- Laura L. Kiessling, Hilldale Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry
and Laurens Anderson Professor of Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin: Chemoselective
reactions for biology.
- John Gerard Ruggie, Kirkpatrick Professor of International Affairs,
Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University: Governing multinationals: the
case of human rights.
- Kathryn Sikkink , Regents Professor and McKnight Distinguished
University Professor, University of Minnesota: The origins and effects of human
rights trials in the world.
Two Fellows Win 2008 Pulitzer Prize
The 2008 Pulitzer Prizes in poetry and general nonfiction were awarded to two Academy
Fellows. The winners are:
- Robert Hass, for poetry, for his collection, Time and Materials.
A second poetry prize was awarded to Philip Schultz for Failure.
- Saul Friedländer, Professor of History at the University of California,
Los Angeles, for general nonfiction, for The Years of Extermination: Nazi Germany
and the Jews, 1939-1945.
Charles Stark Draper Prize Awarded to Rudolf Kalman
 Academy Fellow
Rudolf Kalman, Professor Emeritus of the Swiss Federal Institute
of Technology in Zurich, has been awarded the Charles Stark Draper Prize by the
National Academy of Engineering. The $500,000 annual award is among the engineering
profession’s highest honors and recognizes engineers whose accomplishments have
significantly benefited society. Kalman is honored for “the development and dissemination
of the optimal digital technique (known as the Kalman Filter) that is pervasively
used to control a vast array of consumer, health, commercial, and defense products.”
Ronald Dworkin Receives 2007 Holberg International Memorial
Prize
Academy Fellow Ronald Dworkin, Professor of Philosophy and Frank
Henry Sommer Professor of Law at New York University, has been awarded the 2007
Holberg International Memorial Prize for outstanding scholarly work in the fields
of the arts and humanities, social sciences, law and theology. At a ceremony in
Bergen, Norway, Dworkin was honored for developing “an original and highly influential
theory of law in which the law is based on ethical principles” and for his “unique
ability to tie abstract philosophical ideas and arguments together with concrete
everyday issues in law, moral philosophy and politics.” Dworkin is the fourth recipient
of the Holberg Prize, which was established by the Norwegian Parliament in 2003.
Four Fellows Among Recipients of the 2007 National Medal of
Arts and National Humanities Medal
The National Medal of Arts is the highest award given to artists and arts patrons
by the United States government. This lifetime achievement award recognizes individuals
and groups for outstanding contributions to the excellence, growth, support, and
availability of the arts in the United States. Among the 2007 recipients are two
Academy Fellows:
- N. Scott Momaday, University of Arizona, “for his writings
and his work that celebrate and preserve Native American art and oral tradition.
He has introduced millions worldwide to the essence of Native American culture.”
- Andrew Wyeth, Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania, “for a lifetime of paintings
whose meticulous realism has captured the American consciousness, and whose austere
vision has displayed the depth and dignity of American life.”
The National Humanities Medal, first awarded in 1989 as the Charles Frankel Prize,
honors individuals and organizations whose work has deepened the nation's understanding
of the humanities, broadened citizens' engagement with the humanities, or helped
preserve and expand America's access to important humanities resources. Among the
2007 recipients are two Academy Fellows:
- Cynthia Ozick, New Rochelle, New York, “for her literary criticism,
which has traced the shifting currents of American arts and letters. In her criticism
and essays she has been a lifelong advocate and practitioner of moral clarity and
literary excellence.”
- Richard Pipes, Harvard University, “for his peerless scholarship
on Russia and Eastern Europe and for his dedication to the cause of freedom. He
has shaped and sharpened our understanding of the contest between liberty and tyranny.”
Three Fellows Awarded The Shaw Prize
Three of four winners of The 2007 Shaw Prize are Academy members. Known as the “Nobels
of the East,” the annual awards are worth $1 million each and are given by The Shaw
Prize Foundation in Hong Kong, in recognition of achievement in academic and scientific
research. Established in 2002, The Shaw Prize consists of three annual prizes: Astronomy,
Life Science and Medicine, and Mathematical Sciences.
Academy Fellows who received The 2007 Shaw Prize are:
- Astronomy: Peter Goldreich, Institute for Advanced Study and
California Institute of Technology, “in recognition of his lifetime achievements
in theoretical astrophysics and planetary sciences.” Goldreich’s groundbreaking
research has probed such topics as the origin of spiral structure in disk galaxies,
the electrodynamics of pulsars, and helioseismology. “His work, insights, and accomplishments,”
the foundation said in a written announcement, “set the gold standard for the field.”
- Life Science and Medicine: Robert J. Lefkowitz, Duke University
Medical Center, “for his relentless elucidation of the major receptor system that
mediates the response of cells and organs to drugs and hormones.” In work extending
over 35 years, Lefkowitz’s research revealed how chemical messengers are received
and interpreted by target cells. This information has helped researchers develop
even more powerful medications for an assortment of ailments, including high blood
pressure, congestive heart failure, and schizophrenia.
- Mathematical Sciences: Robert P. Langlands, Institute for Advanced
Study, shared with Richard Taylor of Harvard University, “for initiating and developing
a grand unifying vision of mathematics that connects prime numbers with symmetry.”
Their work, the foundation said, “has guided mathematicians over the past 40 years
and will continue to do so for years to come.”
Back to Press Releases
|