In March 1945, Mrs. Laura M. Agassiz sent the Academy three portraits of members of the Agassiz family: her late husband, Maximilian (1866–1941); his father, Alexander (1835–1910; elected to the Academy in 1862); and his grandfather, Louis (1807–1873; elected a Foreign Honorary Member in 1846). Both elder Agassizes were active members of the Academy; Alexander served as president from 1894–1903. The Academy accessioned the portraits into its collections and put them on display in the Newbury Street headquarters, which the Agassiz family helped to build.

The Academy uses LinkedIn to share news about projects, publications, and events, as well as reach new audiences.

The Member Guide is a new publication this year developed to illuminate ways in which members can connect to one another and the Academy. This resource offers an overview of Academy activities, projects, and processes with highlights throughout to indicate how members can get involved and who to contact with questions.

John Kaag describes his time as a Visiting Scholar at the Academy (2007-2008).

Prizes Awarded by the American Academy

On May 12 and 13, the Academy and Argonne National Laboratory hosted a workshop, “Toward a New Nuclear Regime: The Fuel Cycle of the Future.” International representation from developed and emerging nuclear countries, as well as regional and international organizations, included senior policy officials, eminent scientists and educators, and leaders of the nuclear industry.

The Academy recently launched a new informational resource: the National Inventory of Humanities Organizations (NIHO).

Academy members are frequently invited on television shows to share their expertise and insights. If you follow the Academy on social media, we share broadcast segments featuring members.

The American Academy of Arts and Sciences has named Joan Wallach Scott as the recipient of the 2016 Talcott Parsons Prize for her distinguished contributions to the social sciences. This award will be presented to Professor Scott, a member of the Academy, on April 6, 2017, at the House of the Academy in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Select Upcoming Events

The American Academy of Arts & Sciences is awarding the May Sarton Award for Poetry to dg nanouk okpik in recognition of work that demonstrates both distinguished achievement and exceptional promise.

Randy Schekman will present the recommendations of the ARISE report to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

Miranda Restovic and Sarah DeBacher of the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities describes their organization’s efforts to bring rich, humanities-focused educational experiences to preschoolers, thereby expanding the traditional understanding of what a humanities organization does—and for whom.

Key recommendations in the fall 2011 issue of the Academy’s journal, Daedalus, “Protecting the Internet as a Public Commons,” are reflected in the White House’s newly released “Privacy Bill of Rights,” for online consumers.

Danielle Allen appeared on MSNBC's Velshi to discuss expanding the House of Representatives.

A working group of the American Academy project “Challenges for International Scientific Partnerships,” led by Arthur Bienenstock and Peter Michelson, calls greater global cooperation “increasingly essential.”

When Daniel Barron (Brigham and Women's Hospital) delivered a keynote address at an event with the National Association of Social Workers, he proposed ways to approach the use of AI to help social workers advance innovation without compromising compassion.