Eight Researchers Accept The National Medal Of Science For 1996

During the same week that Americans Kerri Strug, Tom Dolan, and Amy Van Dyken struck gold at the Atlanta Olympics, President Clinton was presenting medals of a different sort to eight of the United States' top scientists in Washington, D.C. The researchers were lauded at a White House ceremony late last month as winners of the celebrated National Medal of Science, the U.S. government's highest honor in science. They represent a wide range of disciplines and include two life scientists. Joining them at the ceremony were the five living recipients of the National Medal of Technology (see story). Established by Congress in 1959 and first awarded three years later, the medals are administered by the National Science Foundation and honor individuals for contributing to the physical, biological, mathematical, engineering, or social and behavioral sciences. Nominations-solicited over the World Wide Web and by letters to colleges, universities, professional societies, and members of the National Academy of Sciences and National Academy of Engineering-are reviewed by the Committee on the National Medal of Science, which is appointed by the president. The committee then forwards its recommendations to the president and his science adviser. Including the 1996 recipients, 344 scientists have been honored with the medal. KUMAR PATEL "It is a concrete way of personalizing what science is-humanizing it," says C. Kumar N. Patel, the vice chancellor for research at the University of California, Los Angeles. "There are people behind what gets done. Work doesn't come out of the sky. There are real people who go through the hard work, the pain, the working late nights." Patel, 58, was lauded for inventing the carbon dioxide laser, which is used in manufacturing, medical treatment, scientific investigations, and materials processing. He views the Medal of Science as an acknowledgment of the importance of science. "Recognition like this, I firmly hope, goes a long way to convince young people that science and technology continues to be important for the future in this country," he maintains. NORMAN DAVIDSON Norman Davidson, the Norman W. Chandler Professor, Emeritus, and executive officer of the Division of Biology at the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, credits his medal "to the bright young people who have chosen to work with me over the course of my career, and the environment here at Caltech, which nourishes innovative research." The 80-year-old molecular biologist was cited "for breakthroughs in chemistry and biology which have led to the earliest understanding of the overall structure of genomes." His research on DNA, for example, established the principle of nucleic acid renaturation, a key element in molecular biology with important uses in determining the structure and function of genes (J.G. Wetmur, N. Davidson, Journal of Molecular Biology, 31:349-70, 1968). "All the research that I did, starting with the physical chemistry of DNA, was motivated by the realization that the interesting property of DNA was not that it was just another polymer but that it was an informational molecule," he says. "One part of the strand was different from another part, and one was looking for ways of understanding that and learning from it." RUTH PATRICK The other life scientist to receive a Medal of Science was Ruth Patrick, 88, who holds the Francis Boyer Chair of Limnology at Philadelphia's Academy of Natural Sciences. Limnology is the study of fresh water, and Patrick has spent decades examining how biological diversity affects the health of freshwater ecosystems. She cites her work with diatoms, a type of single-celled algae that can reflect water quality, as research for which she would like to be remembered. National Medal of Technology Goes to Ron Brown, Five Others Along with naming eight recipients of the National Medal of Science, President Clinton designated four individuals and a corporation as winners of its companion award, the National Medal of Technology. The five were honored at a White House ceremony late last month. At the ceremony, Clinton also awarded a special, posthumous National Medal of Technology to Ron Brown, the late United States secretary of commerce who was killed in an April airplane crash. "Many of you who knew and worked with Ron know that he was a tireless advocate of government leadership in research and development, especially in technology," the president said. "He understood that it was the key to producing world-class technology to ensure America's leadership in the global economy." Administered by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the medals are given "for technological innovation and advancement of U.S. global competitiveness," according to a statement from the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP). "The Medal of Technology also recognizes ground-breaking contributions that commercialize a technology, create jobs, improve productivity, or stimulate the nation's growth and development in other ways." Congress established the medal in 1980, and it was first awarded in 1985. A committee appointed by the secretary of commerce reviews nominations collected via the World Wide Web and letters to private-industry companies and executives. It then recommends finalists to the secretary. The secretary, in turn, makes recommendations to the president, who has the final say. The other recipients of this year's National Medal of Technology and their noteworthy achievements, as reported in the OSTP statement, are as follows: Charles H. Kaman, president, chairman, and chief executive officer, Kaman Corp., Bloomfield, Conn., "for his pioneering work in helicopter technology and for making present-day helicopters more stable and easier to fly. He is also responsible for many other innovations, including artificial intelligence in medicine and electromagnetic motors to run cleaner public transit buses." Stephanie Louise Kwolek, consultant and former research associate, DuPont Co., Wilmington, Del., "for her contributions in the discovery and development of high-performance aramid fibers, which are used today in products such as lightweight bullet-proof vests and fiber optic cables." James C. Morgan, chairman and chief executive officer, Applied Materials Inc., Santa Clara, Calif., "for his vision and leadership in the development of the U.S. semiconductor manufacturing equipment industry. Through his work with Applied Materials, he has successfully positioned the United States as the global leader in this industry." Peter H. Rose, president, Krytek Corp., Danvers, Mass., "for his leadership in the development and commercialization of ion implantation products, which are necessary for the production of modern semiconductors. His innovative work in this area has enabled the United States to maintain a global leadership position in the implantation equipment industry." Johnson and Johnson, New Brunswick, N.J., "for a century of innovation in the research, development, and commercialization of products such as the first hepatitis C test, a monoclonal antibody that reverses organ rejection, and the first disposable contact lens." -T.W.D. "As I told the president, I feel very humble in receiving [the medal], because it is a very great honor," Patrick declares. "I hope it will bring attention to the importance of biodiversity in solving our water-pollution problems." JAMES FLANAGAN Receiving a medal left James L. Flanagan, director of the Center for Computer Aids for Industrial Productivity and vice president for research at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, N.J., "overwhelmed, very surprised, and very delighted." During his 33-year tenure at Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill, N.J., Flanagan brought "engineering techniques and speech science together to solve basic problems in speech communication," according to the medal citation. He also oversaw a group that developed automation technologies for telecommunications systems, including voice mail and call routing. While insisting that voice mail is "a great tool and a time-saver," he acknowledges the frustrations of those caught in endless loops of mechanical voices and menu options. "It's important that the human-factor scenario be well-designed, and there are great varieties there," notes Flanagan, 71. "Some are well-designed to human use, and some are less well-designed. It is important that the human factor's engineering be done well to make the system maximally useful." RICHARD KARP Richard M. Karp, a professor of computer science and engineering at the University of Washington in Seattle, jokes that his medal may help him to score points on the home front. "It's very nice to have one's work recognized. It's something I can tell my mother about," he says. "It's something that can impress my eight-year-old son, who otherwise isn't too impressed with me sometimes. It has many nice features." Karp is being cited for his work in linking advances in theoretical computer science "to real-world problems" while at the University of California, Berkeley. He explains that his research "concerns the realm of combinatorial problems, like scheduling, matching, packing of objects, determining the best routes of aircraft-problems that involve searching and sifting through an astronomically large number of possible solutions, looking for one that satisfies a set of conditions." The 61-year-old researcher hopes that his prize will earn him respect in his new endeavor. "In recent years I've turned my attention to computational problems in molecular biology and genetics," he states. "The National Medal of Science, perhaps, will help people in that field take me a little more seriously. It may have its uses there." WALLACE BROECKER Also invoking familial pride is Wallace S. Broecker, 64, the Newberry Professor of Geology at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory in Palisades, N.Y. "To be singled out as one of eight people to get an award by your country-you've got to feel kind of good about it. I know my wife and kids do," he declares. While studying chemical changes in the ocean and atmosphere, Broecker determined that once every millennium or so, the Earth undergoes large, abrupt changes from one climate state to another. By Broecker's standards, "abrupt" can mean as little as 20 years, and "big" can refer to a change of 10 degrees Celsius in Greenland's mean annual temperature. "I've always prided myself on being a bit ahead of the curve, thinking in new ways and trying to break new ground," he maintains. PAUL SAMUELSON The sole social scientist among this year's recipients is Paul A. Samuelson, an Institute Professor, emeritus, of economics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. Samuelson's medal is "for his fundamental contributions to economic science, education, and policy for nearly 60 years, establishing both the agenda of modern economics and scientific standards for economic analysis of a wide range of problems, including social security and the public debt, welfare, and international trade." "My main reaction was that it was a compliment to my discipline, because economics is not yet an exact science," observes the 81-year-old Samuelson. "To be allowed to sit at the same table as the exact sciences is kind of a recognition that we've come a long way, baby." In addition, Samuelson believes his award is "a good thing for the social sciences. . . . Of course, there's a certain amount of personal gratification, but that goes with the territory." Also receiving a medal was Stephen Smale, 66, a professor, emeritus, of mathematics at the University of California, Berkeley. Smale, who now conducts research and teaches at the City University of Hong Kong, was cited "for four decades of pioneering work on basic research questions which have led to major advances in pure and applied mathematics. He is responsible for formulating key definitions, proofs, and conjectures which have energized an ever-growing number of mathematicians and scientists." Presidential honors may seem a bit ironic in Smale's case, given the controversy generated by his involvement with Berkeley's free-speech movement and his vocal opposition to the Vietnam War in the 1960s. He was subpoenaed by the House Un-American Activities Committee. After making antiwar statements in Moscow while picking up the prestigious Fields Medal in 1967, Smale became the target of conservative members of Congress, who called on the National Science Foundation to discontinue his grants. NSF, citing poor administration of the grant, initially seemed inclined to withhold funds from Smale, though it later backed off. Although Smale is pleased to have his work recognized, he is quick to point out, "I don't work for medals. It's not my main goal. But it's a great satisfaction, for the work itself and to be recognized on the national presidential level." Perhaps the greatest evidence of the breadth of Smale's influence can be found in a comment from fellow Medal of Science winner Paul Samuelson. "He has done important work in differential equations in mathematics, but there's been a special importance of his work to economics," Samuelson says. "It legitimized a lot of the methods I had used earlier, which some people were thinking had been made obsolete." Acknowledges Smale, "My mathematics isn't quite so remote as most mathematics, in that I've tried to relate it to economics and physics and computer science."

Eight Researchers Accept The National Medal Of Science For 1996

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