Peter L. van der Geer, Professor
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

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• Hellman Fellow 2003-2004

  Professor van der Geer has been selected as a 2003-2004 Hellman Fellow, which carries a $10,000 award to support his research. A luncheon honoring this years Hellman Fellows will be held June 5, 2003.

Michael S. VanNieuwenhze, Professor
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

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• Hellman Fellow 2003-2004
• Lilly New Faculty Award, 2003

Van Vu, Professor
Department of Mathematics

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• Sloan Fellowship, 2002

Ernest Wenkert, Professor Emeritus
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Organic

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• Lifetime Achievement Award 2002: 10th Symposium on the Latest Trends in Organic Synthesis
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  Given in recognition of his long-standing contributions to the art and craft of organic synthesis and to the community of organic chemists.

Awards:

• Elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Peter Wolynes, Professor
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
Department of Physics

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• Biophysical Society Founders Award (2008)
  
  Awarded for his “exceptional intellectual contributions in advancing biophysical theory and physical sciences.” 

  The Biophysical Society was established in 1957 “to encourage development and dissemination of knowledge in biophysics.”  The award, which includes a $1,000 honorarium, will be presented at the Society’s Annual Meeting in Long Beach, California in February 2008.

  Wolynes has developed the leading theory of how proteins fold, which has led to computer algorithms that make it possible to predict the three-dimensional structure of a protein from its amino acid sequence.  His work on the theory of energy landscapes has also impacted condensed matter physics, notably illuminating the nature of glasses and liquids.

   

• American Philosophical Society (2006)

• American Physical Society 2004 Biological Physics Prize

  "Awarded for his conceptual breakthroughs in protein dynamics and protein folding, and his critical insights toward the understanding of how proteins work at the most fundamental level." The prize was presented at the APS March, 2004 meeting in Montreal, was established to recognize and encourage outstanding achievement in biological physics research and consists of $5,000 and a certificate.

• Fellow of the Biophysical Society, 2003

  For his contributions to significant advances in the theory of protein folding and structure.

• German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (2007)

  Elected to the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina in recognition of his scientific achievements and “personal standing.” 

  Founded in 1652, the Leopoldina is the “world’s oldest academy involved in the natural sciences that has been permanently in existence.”  The number of members is limited to 1,000 total in 28 subject sections.  Wolynes will belong to the subsection of Theoretical Physics. 

  Wolynes has developed the leading theory of how proteins fold, which has led to computer algorithms that allow one to predict the three-dimensional structure of a protein from its amino acid sequence.  His work on the theory of energy landscapes has also impacted condensed matter physics, notably illuminating the nature of glasses and liquids.

• Royal Society of UK (2007)
  
  The Royal Society, the national academy of science in the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth, has elected to its ranks Peter G. Wolynes for his pioneering research in chemical physics and chemical biology.

  Wolynes was cited for his “seminal work in areas as diverse as ion solvation dynamics, chemical reactions in condensed phases, the subtleties of quantum energy flow, the puzzles of glasses and the glass transition, and the vast challenges of biopolymers and protein folding and function.”

  The Council of the Royal Society generates a list of the strongest candidates who have been nominated by two Fellows of the Royal Society.  Candidates are selected if they receive a two-thirds vote of fellows attending the Annual Meeting for the Election of Fellows.  Wolynes and the eight other fellows selected this year will be formally admitted to the Society at a formal Admissions Day ceremony in July.

Congjun Wu, Assistant Professor
Department of Physics

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Awards:

• Sloan Research Fellow (2008)
  
  Dr. Wu will receive a grant of $50,000 over a two year period.
  “The Sloan Research Fellowships support the work of exceptional young researchers early in their academic careers, and often at pivotal stages in their work,” says Paul L. Joskow, President of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.
  The Sloan Research Fellowships have been awarded since 1955. Wu is studying novel phases and properties in various fields of condensed matter physics, including metal-insulator transitions, magnetism and superconductivity, and quantum computation.

Nguyen-Huu Xuong, Professor Emeritus
Department of Physics

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• Charles Supper Award for 2004

  Awarded by the American Crystallographic Association Council Professor Xuong was cited for his pioneering work in "filmless" x-ray detection methods which have revolutionized x-ray diffraction data collection for macromolecular crystallography.