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NSF PS 01-08 - October 10, 2001
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Mary Hanson
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(703) 292-8070
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mhanson@nsf.gov
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Statement by Dr. Rita R. Colwell
Director, National Science Foundation
On Nobel Prizes in Science and NSF Connection
I am so pleased to congratulate this year’s Nobel laureates
in science for their much-deserved recognition. Their
accomplishments also reflect the foresight of the
American people who, through the National Science
Foundation, supported decades of their ground-breaking
work.
Of the 12 Nobelists announced this week, eight were
supported by NSF at some time in their careers and
five currently receive NSF funding. All eight -- physicists
Carl Wieman, Eric Cornell and Wolfgang Ketterle; chemist
Barry Sharpless; economists George Aklerlof, Joseph
Stiglitz and Michael Spence; and geneticist Leland
Hartwell -- received the prize for work funded by
NSF.
The impact of the Nobelists and their NSF support extends
beyond the research itself, into the network of people
who support or benefit from it. Most of the laureates
serve regularly as reviewers of NSF proposals. All
three physicists play key roles in NSF-funded centers
which integrate various groups behind a common research
goal. Wieman was honored earlier this year as a recipient
of the 2001 Director’s Awards for Distinguished Teaching
Scholars, NSF’s highest honor for excellence in both
teaching and research.
Another past award foreshadowed this week's announcement:
Cornell was honored by NSF in 1997 with the Alan T.
Waterman Award for outstanding young scientists."
The NSF connection spans the history of the awards;
of Nobelists named since 1960, 118 have received NSF
funding. As the only federal agency to fund fundamental
research across all fields of science and engineering,
NSF is the agent of the American public to invest
in a more secure and productive future. We are honored
with this stewardship, and honored by the accomplishments
of this year’s NSF-supported Nobel laureates.
For a list of 2001 Nobel laureates, see: http://www.nobel.se/
For historical context on NSF's connection to the Nobel
prizes, see: http://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/news/media/2000/nsfnobels.htm
For more information on this year's NSF-funded Nobelists,
contact:
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