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NASA names GRC deputy director
PEOPLE & PLACES UPDATE
New faculty appointments The Pennsylvania State University has announced a number of new faculty members. Melik C. Demirel, Jong-in Hahm, and Aman Haque will be pursuing research in nanomaterials, including fabrication, tribology, and the interface with biology; Ronald Hedden will work on soft condensed matter systems; while Zhiwen Liu, Jian Xu, and Shizhuo Yin are focusing their efforts on various elements of optical and optoelectronic phenomena. NanoInk brings in experience Cedric Loiret-Bernal is the new president and chief executive officer of NanoInk, Inc. He also becomes a member of the company’s board of directors. Loiret-Bernal was formerly chief executive officer and co-founder of the proteomics company, GeneProt, Inc. “He brings more than 17 years of experience and in-depth knowledge of business development, strategic marketing, and fund-raising,” says Mark Slezak, chairman of NanoInk. The company is commercializing dip pen nanolithography techniques for building nanoscale structures. Yu wins laser prize The 2003 Free Electron Laser (FEL) Prize has been won by Li Hua Yu, a physicist at Brookhaven National Laboratory. Yu has developed two types of lasers for experimental investigations, the self-amplified spontaneous emission FEL and the high-gain harmonic generation FEL. “I am very happy to receive this award,” he says. “I am grateful to the excellent team who worked with me to make the high-gain harmonic generation FEL at Brookhaven the first and only one of its kind in the world.” NASA names GRC deputy director Richard S. Christiansen is the new deputy director of NASA’s Glenn Research Center (GRC). He was previously associate director of the agency’s Dryden Flight Research Center. “His strong technical and management background will enhance our microgravity, propulsion, communications, and technology programs,” says Julian Earls, director of the GRC.
Society high-flyers
Foresight awards Feynman prizes Experimental and theoretical research, contributions to the development of new techniques, and commercial leadership are rewarded in the American Physical Society’s prizes and awards for 2004.
James P. Wolfe (shown), of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, wins the Frank Isakson Prize. “I am elated,” says Wolfe. “The award recognizes a progression of work elucidating the motion and thermodynamics of elementary excitations in solids.” His development of graphic imaging techniques, in particular, made this understanding possible. Chia-Ling Chien of The Johns Hopkins University receives the David Adler Lectureship Award for ‘path-breaking research in magnetic nanostructures’. The Oliver E. Buckley Prize for contributions to the theory of condensed matter systems is shared jointly by Tom C. Lubensky of the University of Pennsylvania and David R. Nelson of Harvard University. In the polymer field, Timothy P. Lodge of the University of Minnesota and Marcus Müller of Johannes Gutenberg-Universität, Germany, win the Polymer Prize and John H. Dillon Medal, respectively. Contributions to surface enhanced Raman scattering win Richard P. Van Duyne of Northwestern University the Earl K. Plyler Prize. NanoDevices’ Virgil Elings wins the Keithley Award for developing and commercializing scanning probe microscopies.
National honor for Garwin Richard L. Garwin of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York is to receive a US National Medal of Science for his contributions to the invention of magnetic resonance techniques used in medical imaging applications. The medal, awarded by President Bush, honors researchers who have made groundbreaking and career-long achievements. Garwin laid the foundations for superconducting electronic circuitry. He is also an advisor to the US government on a range of scientific issues, including nuclear safety and arms control. He has worked on and champions the use of nonlethal weapons in combat.
The 2003 Feynman Prize for experimental research in nanotechnology has been presented to Carlo Montemagno of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). His work focuses on methods of integrating single-molecular biological motors with nanoscale Si devices. Montemagno is chair of bioengineering and co-director of UCLA’s Institute for Cell Mimetic Space Exploration. The Feynman Prize for theoretical work goes to Marvin L. Cohen and Steven G. Louie of the University of California at Berkeley for their work on understanding materials properties and behaviors. The Foresight Institute awarded the prizes at its annual conference on molecular nanotechnology.
Kwolek enters Hall of Fame Stephanie Kwolek, a scientist at DuPont, has been inducted into the US National Women’s Hall of Fame for research that lead to the manufacture of Kevlar® aramid fiber. The Hall of Fame recognizes individuals who have contributed achievements of enduring value to society, as well as to their field of work. It was Kwolek’s discoveries in the area of liquid crystalline polymer solutions that formed the basis for the commercial preparation of Kevlar. The high strength of the material, combined with its light weight, has lead to applications from body armor to blast and flame barriers. “I am honored and, quite frankly, humbled to be a part of the National Women’s Hall of Fame,” says Kwolek.
ESF gets Marks for strategy John Marks has been appointed as director of science and strategy at the European Science Foundation (ESF). “I very much look forward to furthering the vital importance of the ESF in fostering European collaboration and excellence,” says Marks. This comes at a time when a pan-European approach to funding fundamental research is on the political agenda. Marks believes the ESF should position itself as the logical choice to play a central role in its realization. Marks has over 23 years of experience in science policy and management. He previously managed a budget of 30 million as director of earth and life sciences for the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO). He has also served on the science and policy directorate in the Netherlands’ Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science.
Please send details of new appointments, honors, and awards to [email protected]
December 2003
63
New faculty appointments The Pennsylvania State University has announced a number of new faculty members. Melik C. Demirel, Jong-in Hahm, and Aman Haque will be pursuing research in nanomaterials, including fabrication, tribology, and the interface with biology; Ronald Hedden will work on soft condensed matter systems; while Zhiwen Liu, Jian Xu, and Shizhuo Yin are focusing their efforts on various elements of optical and optoelectronic phenomena. NanoInk brings in experience Cedric Loiret-Bernal is the new president and chief executive officer of NanoInk, Inc. He also becomes a member of the company’s board of directors. Loiret-Bernal was formerly chief executive officer and co-founder of the proteomics company, GeneProt, Inc. “He brings more than 17 years of experience and in-depth knowledge of business development, strategic marketing, and fund-raising,” says Mark Slezak, chairman of NanoInk. The company is commercializing dip pen nanolithography techniques for building nanoscale structures. Yu wins laser prize The 2003 Free Electron Laser (FEL) Prize has been won by Li Hua Yu, a physicist at Brookhaven National Laboratory. Yu has developed two types of lasers for experimental investigations, the self-amplified spontaneous emission FEL and the high-gain harmonic generation FEL. “I am very happy to receive this award,” he says. “I am grateful to the excellent team who worked with me to make the high-gain harmonic generation FEL at Brookhaven the first and only one of its kind in the world.” NASA names GRC deputy director Richard S. Christiansen is the new deputy director of NASA’s Glenn Research Center (GRC). He was previously associate director of the agency’s Dryden Flight Research Center. “His strong technical and management background will enhance our microgravity, propulsion, communications, and technology programs,” says Julian Earls, director of the GRC.
Society high-flyers
Foresight awards Feynman prizes Experimental and theoretical research, contributions to the development of new techniques, and commercial leadership are rewarded in the American Physical Society’s prizes and awards for 2004.
James P. Wolfe (shown), of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, wins the Frank Isakson Prize. “I am elated,” says Wolfe. “The award recognizes a progression of work elucidating the motion and thermodynamics of elementary excitations in solids.” His development of graphic imaging techniques, in particular, made this understanding possible. Chia-Ling Chien of The Johns Hopkins University receives the David Adler Lectureship Award for ‘path-breaking research in magnetic nanostructures’. The Oliver E. Buckley Prize for contributions to the theory of condensed matter systems is shared jointly by Tom C. Lubensky of the University of Pennsylvania and David R. Nelson of Harvard University. In the polymer field, Timothy P. Lodge of the University of Minnesota and Marcus Müller of Johannes Gutenberg-Universität, Germany, win the Polymer Prize and John H. Dillon Medal, respectively. Contributions to surface enhanced Raman scattering win Richard P. Van Duyne of Northwestern University the Earl K. Plyler Prize. NanoDevices’ Virgil Elings wins the Keithley Award for developing and commercializing scanning probe microscopies.
National honor for Garwin Richard L. Garwin of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York is to receive a US National Medal of Science for his contributions to the invention of magnetic resonance techniques used in medical imaging applications. The medal, awarded by President Bush, honors researchers who have made groundbreaking and career-long achievements. Garwin laid the foundations for superconducting electronic circuitry. He is also an advisor to the US government on a range of scientific issues, including nuclear safety and arms control. He has worked on and champions the use of nonlethal weapons in combat.
The 2003 Feynman Prize for experimental research in nanotechnology has been presented to Carlo Montemagno of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). His work focuses on methods of integrating single-molecular biological motors with nanoscale Si devices. Montemagno is chair of bioengineering and co-director of UCLA’s Institute for Cell Mimetic Space Exploration. The Feynman Prize for theoretical work goes to Marvin L. Cohen and Steven G. Louie of the University of California at Berkeley for their work on understanding materials properties and behaviors. The Foresight Institute awarded the prizes at its annual conference on molecular nanotechnology.
Kwolek enters Hall of Fame Stephanie Kwolek, a scientist at DuPont, has been inducted into the US National Women’s Hall of Fame for research that lead to the manufacture of Kevlar® aramid fiber. The Hall of Fame recognizes individuals who have contributed achievements of enduring value to society, as well as to their field of work. It was Kwolek’s discoveries in the area of liquid crystalline polymer solutions that formed the basis for the commercial preparation of Kevlar. The high strength of the material, combined with its light weight, has lead to applications from body armor to blast and flame barriers. “I am honored and, quite frankly, humbled to be a part of the National Women’s Hall of Fame,” says Kwolek.
ESF gets Marks for strategy John Marks has been appointed as director of science and strategy at the European Science Foundation (ESF). “I very much look forward to furthering the vital importance of the ESF in fostering European collaboration and excellence,” says Marks. This comes at a time when a pan-European approach to funding fundamental research is on the political agenda. Marks believes the ESF should position itself as the logical choice to play a central role in its realization. Marks has over 23 years of experience in science policy and management. He previously managed a budget of 30 million as director of earth and life sciences for the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO). He has also served on the science and policy directorate in the Netherlands’ Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science.
Please send details of new appointments, honors, and awards to [email protected]
December 2003
63