Three University of Wyoming professors have been awarded the distinction of 2009 Fellow
from the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world's largest
general scientific society.
UW's Stephen T. Jackson, Bruce Parkinson and George F. Vance were among the 531 members
selected by their AAAS peers this year recognizing their scientifically or socially
distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications.
They will be presented with an official certificate and a gold and blue (representing
science and engineering, respectively) rosette pin at the AAAS Fellows Forum in February
at the association's annual meeting in San Diego.
Jackson, a professor in the Department of Botany, was recognized for distinguished
contributions to the fields of paleontology and earth-system history, particularly
the conceptual and empirical studies integrating ecology, paleoecology, biogeography
and climate change.
A renowned solar energy researcher and a professor in the Department of Chemistry
and the UW School of Energy Resources, Parkinson was recognized for significant contributions
to fields such as photoelectrochemical energy conversion, materials chemistry, surface
science, scanning probe microscopies and nanomaterials.
Vance, a professor in the Department of Renewable Resources, was recognized for distinguished
contributions to environmental issues/quality of agriculture, mine lands and water
resources associated with containment remediation/restoration, methodologies and natural
resource management.
The tradition of AAAS Fellows began in 1874. Currently, members can be considered
for the rank of Fellow if nominated by the steering groups of the Association's 24
sections, or by any three Fellows who are current AAAS members (so long as two of
the three sponsors are not affiliated with the nominee's institution), or by the AAAS
chief executive officer.
The AAAS, founded in 1848, includes some 262 affiliated societies and academies of
science and serves 10 million individuals. The association also publishes the journal,
Science (www.sciencemag.org) as well as Science Translational Medicine (www.sciencetranslationalmedicine.org)
and Science Signaling (www.sciencesignaling.org.)