Eighteen accomplished researchers, including a 91-year-old endocrinologist who's known affectionately as "the George Burns of science," are being honored for their achievements at the 134th annual meeting of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), scheduled for April 28 in Washington, D.C. They will be feted during an event that will include the election of new academy members and the induction of members elected last year (T.W. Durso, The Scientist, May 27, 1996, page 3).
The academy's highest honor-and the only award not to confer a cash prize-is the Public Welfare Medal, being given to George W. Thorn, 91, the Samuel A. Levine Professor of Medicine, emeritus, and the Hersey Professor of the Theory and Practice of Physics, emeritus, at Harvard Medical School. The bronze medal, established in 1914, is presented annually to honor contributions in the application of science to the public welfare.
Among his accomplishments, Thorn helped establish the ...
