In October 2019, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) elected 443 of its members as AAAS Fellows. This designation reflects the Fellows’ efforts to advance science and its applications to better serve society. The Fellows collectively span the AAAS’s 24 different sections, and seven members of SIAM were honored as 2019 Fellows within the Section on Mathematics:
- David M. Bressoud, Macalester College
- Lisa J. Fauci, Tulane University
- Sheldon H. Jacobson, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
- John S. Lowengrub, University of California, Irvine
- Michael J. Miksis, Northwestern University
- Kavita Ramanan, Brown University
- Jinchao Xu, Pennsylvania State University
- Kevin Zumbrun, Indiana University
To be considered for the rank of Fellow, an AAAS member must be nominated by three previously elected Fellows, the steering group of an AAAS section, or the organization’s chief executive officer. Nominees undergo a two-step review process.
All incoming Fellows were recognized at the 2020 AAAS Annual Meeting, which took place this February in Seattle, Wash. Several of the honorees in the Section on Mathematics shared their thoughts and reactions with SIAM News.
David M. Bressoud: “I am very honored to have been elected as an AAAS Fellow. I admire their work as advocates for science, particularly all that they do to advance science and mathematics education, and I have been especially impressed by their leadership on issues of equity. I am proud to be part of this organization."
Lisa J. Fauci (current SIAM president):“I was so pleased and honored to be named an AAAS Fellow! The AAAS is an organization that unites all of science, advocates for responsible science policy worldwide, and promotes scientific integrity. In recognizing members of the SIAM community, it asserts that applied mathematics and scientific computation are central to the scientific endeavor.”
Sheldon H. Jacobson: "AAAS is the premier professional organization that brings together science and public policy. It is a privilege to be elected an AAAS Fellow, and an even bigger privilege to contribute to the greater good of society through the organization. Mathematics is the common language of science. I am grateful to have the opportunity to use it to make the world a better place."
Michael J. Miksis: “The AAAS’s membership encompasses the whole scientific and engineering community. Receiving recognition there is both an honor and a reminder that applied mathematics is a central and important part of the scientific and engineering enterprise. Enhancing our interactions with this diverse community helps us identify how applied mathematics can make significant contributions to problems facing society today.”
Kavita Ramanan: “I am deeply humbled by this honor. Given the interdisciplinary nature of some of my own research in probability, I particularly value an organization like the AAAS, which unites researchers from different disciplines. I enjoyed attending talks outside my field at the AAAS Annual Meeting, some of which triggered new mathematical research questions, and hope that the math talks were of similar value to scientists. This recognition is even more special given that the broader goals of the AAAS—notably science advocacy and communication, international cooperation, and equity—align closely with my own.”
Jinchao Xu: “Given the abundant resources in advanced computers and big data nowadays, mathematics is becoming increasingly important in science. As a computational mathematician, I am grateful for this recognition of my research, which provides bridges and tools that connect mathematical applications to different branches of science through analysis, modeling, data, and simulations. The AAAS offers an ideal platform to enhance interactions and collaborations between mathematicians and scientists in other fields.”
Kevin Zumbrun: “I am deeply honored by the AAAS’s recognition of my work. It is particularly meaningful to me that it comes from a society concerned with science across all fields, and one with which mathematics has traditionally not been so much associated. As mathematicians, we are all scientists; as applied mathematicians, exchange with other sciences is both goal and inspiration. Representation in the AAAS facilitates this exchange in both directions while simultaneously providing a voice in the larger exchange between science and society.”