Today it was announced that two professors from the College of Natural Resources are among the 72 new members elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) this year. Robert Fischer, professor of plant and microbial biology and Sarah Hake, director of the USDA Plant Gene Expression Center and adjunct professor of plant and microbial biology were elected “in recognition of their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research.”
The NAS was established in 1863 by a congressional act of incorporation signed by Abraham Lincoln. The society advises government leaders on matters of science and technology and election to this prestigious society of scholars is one of the highest honors that can be accorded a U.S. scientist or engineer.
At the moment, there are 135 members of NAS at Berkeley. Such historic figures as Albert Einstein, Robert Oppenheimer, Thomas Edison, Orville Wright and Alexander Graham Bell were members of the academy. In addition, more than 180 living academy members have won Nobel Prizes.