UA News

They join more than 500 other scientists from around the world who will be honored at the Association's annual meeting in February in San Diego.

The American Association for the Advancement of Science has elevated nine of its members from the University of Arizona to the distinction of Fellow.

The association, or AAAS, named 531 Fellows this year, an award bestowed by their peers. The list is published in the current issue of the AAAS journal Science.

The 161-year-old association is the world's largest general scientific society. Its mission is to advance science and serve society through initiatives in science policy, international programs, science education and more.

Those from the UA who were named Fellows are:

Steven R. Archer, professor of natural resources, for novel integration of ecological, remote sensing and earth science theory to advance the conservation and management of the world's grassland and savanna ecosystems.

David D. Breshears, professor of natural resources, for distinguished contributions in dryland ecology related to ecohydrology, wind and water erosion, vegetation gradients and especially drought-induced tree mortality as related to global change.

Robert T. Downs, professor of geosciences, for outstanding contributions to the field of geological sciences, in particular his contributions to a better understanding of chemical properties of naturally occurring inorganic compounds.

Christopher Impey, University Distinguished Professor in astronomy, for distinguished contributions to astronomy education, research and outreach.

Jonathan Overpeck, professor of geosciences and co-director of the Institute of the Environment, for incisive use of the global paleoenvironmental record in understanding and communicating how the Earth system may change in the coming decades to centuries.

Jeanne E. Pemberton, Regents' Professor in chemistry, for distinguished research contributions in understanding solid-liquid interfacial structure, for distinguished leadership in STEM education, and for distinguished service to the chemistry profession.

Mary A. Peterson, professor of psychology, for fundamental advances in our understanding of object and perceptual organization.

Bruce E. Tabashnik, professor and department head in entomology, for distinguished contributions to entomology, especially understanding the evolution and management of insect resistance to insecticides and transgenic plants.

Mary J. Wirth, a UA adjunct professor of chemistry who also is the W. Brooks Fortune Professor for analytical chemistry at Purdue University, for innovations in bioanalytical chemistry, with unique expertise in creating new materials for fast and sensitive protein characterization and for leadership through organizing symposium spanning disciplines.

They will be presented with an official certificate and a gold and blue – representing science and engineering, respectively – rosette pin on Feb. 20 at the AAAS Fellows Forum during the 2010 AAAS Annual Meeting in San Diego.

They join 47 other AAAS Fellows at the UA. Currently, members can be considered for the rank of Fellow if nominated by the steering group of their respective sections, by three Fellows or by the association's chief executive officer.

Each steering group then reviews the nominations of individuals within its respective section and forwards a final list to the AAAS Council. These individuals have been elevated to this rank because of their efforts toward advancing science applications that are deemed scientifically or socially distinguished.