Gallery
The National Medal of Science--50 Years of Honoring America’s Scientists and Engineers
The National Medal of Science (NMS) and the National Medal of Technology and innovation ready to be presented in the East Room of the White House - Feb. 1, 2013
The 1979 National Medal of Science reception in the Jefferson Room of the State Department. Pictured left to right are NSF Laureate Richard Feynman his daughter Michelle, wife Gweneth and son Carl.
The 1979 National Medal of Science reception in the Jefferson Room of the State Department. Pictured are NMS Laureate Simon Ramo and his wife Virginia with an unidentified guest.
President Ronald Reagan shakes hands with Anne Anastasi during the ceremony to present the National medal of Science in the Rose Garden of the White House.
Vice President Al Gore with 1994 National Medal of Science awardees Robert Merton, George S. Hammond, Frank Press, Thomas Elsner, John Cocke, Elizabeth Neufeld, Albert Overhauser and Ray Clough. The awards ceremony was held at the Andrew Mellon Auditorium on Dec. 19, 1994.
National Medal of Science breakfast reception, July 26, 1996, at the National Science Foundation. Pictured left to right are Cathleen Morawetz (NMS committee member and 1998 NMS Laureate), Anne Peterson (NSF deputy director), Marta Cehelsky (National Science Board executive officer), Grace Broecker (wife of 1996 NMS Laureate Wallace S. Broecker) and Vera Rubin (NMS committee member and 1993 NMS Laureate).
“The President’s Own” U.S. Marine Band plays in the White House foyer during the 1999 National Medal of Science and Technology Awards ceremony (March 2000).
The 1999 National Medal of Science and National Medal of Technology (and Innovation was added in 2007) awards reception and dinner at the International Trade Center, Washington, D.C., March 13, 2000.
The 1999 National Medal of Science and National Medal of Technology awards reception and dinner at the International Trade Center,
Washington, D.C., March 13, 2000. Pictured are NMS Laureates, students from Benjamin Banneker Academic High School and NSF Director Rita Colwell.
Front row, L-R: Three Benjamin Banneker High School students, NSF Director Rita Colwell, student, NMS Laureate Susan Solomon, student
Second row, L-R: Two students, NMS Laureates Kenneth Stevens, Jared Diamond, and John Ross, student, NMS Laureates David Baltimore, and Leo Kadanoff
Third row, L-R: student, Felix Browder, Stuart Rice, Lynn Margulis, two students, James Cronin, Robert Solow, student, Ronal Coifman
NMS Laureate Mostafa El-Sayed and a student from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology at the 2007 National Medal of Science gala held at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Washington, D.C., Sept. 28, 2008.
Berni Alder, a 2008 National Medal of Science Laureate, and his family at the White House, Oct. 7, 2009.
Shu Chien, a 2010 National Medal of Science Laureate, and his family at the National Science and Technology Medals Foundation gala, Oct. 21, 2011.
The 2009 National Medal of Science Laureates prepare to enter the East Room of the White House to receive their medals on Nov. 17, 2010. In line are Yakir Aharonov, Stephen Benkovic, Marye Anne Fox, Susan Lindquist and David Mumford.
NSF Deputy Director Cora Marrett (third from right) with 2010 National Medal of Science awardees Jackie Barton, Ralph Brinster, Shu Chien, Rudolf Jaenisch, Richard Tapia and Srinivasa Varadhan at the National Science Foundation, Oct. 20, 2011.
President Barack Obama speaks during the 2010 National Medal of Science (NMS) award ceremony in the East Room of the White House, Oct. 20, 2011. Pictured from the left are NMS awardees Jackie Barton, Ralph Brinster, Shu Chien, Rudolf Jaenisch, Richard Tapia and Srinivasa Varadhan. To the right of the president are the 2010 National Medal of Technology and Innovation awardees.
National Medal of Science 2011 awardees (left to right) Sidney Drell, Leroy Hood, Sandra Faber, Fred Hawthorne, Jim Gates, Solomon Golomb and John Goodenough at the National Science and Technology Medals Foundation gala at the Ritz-Carlton, Washington, D.C., Feb 1, 2013.
Andreas Acrivos
2001 National Medal of Science Awardee Andreas Acrivos discusses his distinguished career in fluid dynamics and the importance of mentoring a next generation of scientists and engineers.
Allen Bard
Chemist Allen Bard, 2011 National Medal of Science Laureate, has spent his entire career at the University of Texas at Austin. His work includes three books, more than 800 peer-reviewed research papers, 75 book chapters, 23 patents and service as editor-in-chief of the Journal of the American Chemical Society for nearly two decades.
Carl de Boor
Carl de Boor, National Medal of Science Awardee in 2005, reflects on the evolution of the field of computer science and his contributions as a mathematician.
Ronald Breslow
1991 National Medal of Science medalist Ronald Breslow discusses how his career progressed from a curious young man mixing random chemicals to devoted research chemist contributing to a new class of anticancer agents.
Carlos Castillo-Chavez
Member of the President’s Committee on the National Medal of Science 2010-2012, Carlos Castillo-Chavez talks about his love of mathematics and how the National Medal of Science honors scientists with multi-dimensional achievements.
Shu Chien
National Medal of Science winner Shu Chien talks about the importance of collaboration in scientific research, and the pursuit of happiness.
Sallie Chisholm
National Medal of Science winner Sallie Chisholm talks about what drives her research into ocean phytoplankton, and shares some inspiring stories from her childhood.
Marvin L. Cohen
Marvin L. Cohen, 2001 National Medal of Science medalist, discusses his creation and application of quantum theory for explaiing and predicting the properties of materials that are at the core of semiconductor physics and nanoscience, today a burgeoning field.
Stanley Cohen
Stanley Cohen was awarded the National Medal of Science in 1988 and the National Medal of Technology in 1989 for his work on antibiotic resistance. He speaks on his discoveries and the value of the support for his basic research which enabled him to study genes in the pursuit of understanding more about their structure, function, reproduction and role in disease.
Rita Colwell
Former NSF Director and 2006 National Medal of Science Laureate Rita Colwell describes her research path from fruit fly geneticist to world class biologist, and the key decision points and supporters along the way.
Peter Dervan and Jacqueline Barton
Peter B. Dervan and Jacqueline Barton are married and have more than just romantic chemistry. Here they discuss their individual careers in biochemistry, for which each was awarded a National Medal of Science. Their joint interview epitomizes the power of a supportive professional and personal union.
Sidney Drell
Theoretical physicist and arms control expert Sidney Drell, 2011 National Medal of Science Laureate, contributed greatly to science specifically to quantum field theory and quantum chromodynamics as well as to the application of science by serving as a distinguished advisor to the U.S. Government on security and intelligence.
Millie Dresselhaus
Excerpts from an interview with 1990 National Medal of Science Awardee Millie Dresselhaus. Once dubbed the “Queen of Carbon,” Dresselhaus is one of the nation’s foremost experts in the field of carbon science, as well as a stellar educator and longtime MIT professor.
Nina Fedoroff
National Medal of Science winner Nina Fedoroff talks about the importance and function of “jumping genes.”
Joanna Fowler
Brookhaven senior chemist and Medal of Science winner Joanna Fowler discusses using positron emission tomography (PET) scans as a means to explore the human brain and help answer critical medical questions.
Richard L. Garwin
2002 National Medal of Science medalist Richard L. Garwin discusses his national security research, which has great relevance to today’s national security challenges.
Sylvester James Gates
Theoretical physicist Sylvester James Gates, 2011 National Medal of Science Laureate, devotes his career to making science accessible to the general public.
James Glimm
2002 National Medal of Science Awardee James Glimm discussed his contributions the world of computer science through mathematical analysis and physics.
Solomon Wolf Golomb
Mathematician and engineer Solomon Wolf Golomb, 2011 National Medal of Science Laureate, is best known to the general public and fans of mathematical games as the inventor of polyominoes, the inspiration for the computer game Tetris. He specializes in problems of combinatorial analysis, number theory, coding theory and communications.
John B. Goodenough
Solid-state physicist John B. Goodenough, 2011 National Medal of Science Laureate, is known for developing lightweight rechargeable batteries now ubiquitous in today’s portable electronic devices.
Leroy Hood
Biologist Leroy Hood, a 2011 National Medal of Science Laureate, is recognized as one of the world's leading scientists in molecular biotechnology and genomics. His development of the DNA sequencer, DNA synthesizer and other instruments resulted in the successful mapping of the human genome that revolutionized biomedicine and forensic science.
Robert Langer
National Medal of Science, and National Medal of Technology winner Robert Langer talks about making the world a better place through scientific research.
Barry Mazur
National Medal of Science winner Barry Mazur talks about what excites him about number theory, and shares an old “family secret.”
C. Kumar Patel
C. Kumar Patel who was awarded the National Medal of Science in 1996 for inventing the carbon dioxide laser, discusses its impact on industrial, scientific, medical, and defense applications.ber theory, and shares an old “family secret.”
Janet Rowley
Janet Rowley (April 5, 1925 - Dec. 17, 2013), Janet Rowley was an American human geneticist and the first scientist to identify a chromosomal translocation as the cause of leukemia and other cancers. She received the National Medal of Science 1998. As a medalist, this year she participated in the NMS 60th anniversary program at the National Academies of Science at which she was interviewed by Lisa-Joy Zgorski of the National Science Foundation.
Lucy Shapiro
Lucy Shapiro is a 2011 National Medal of Science Laureate. While proud of her work in genetics on cancer research, she is most proud of her four grandchildren, to whom she gives advice on following your passion.
Charles Pence Slichter
Charles Pence Slichter, 2007 National Medal of Science awardee, reflects on his research examining the fundamental molecular properties of liquids and solids, and the impact of his research on the development of modern technologies in condensed matter physics, chemistry, biology, and medicine.
Gabor A. Somorjai
Gabor A. Somorjai, 2001 National Medal of Science Awardee, discusses his contributions to the world of molecular studies and the development of new techniques that served as foundations of new surface technologies.
Peter Stang
Peter Stang, a recent National Medal of Science Awardee in 2010, discusses his contributions to the field of chemistry, as well as his dedication to public service.
Joan A. Steitz
Biologist and 1986 National Medal of Science Medalist Joan A. Steitz describes her excitement about research in the field of biology, her contributions, and their vast implications on health today.
Anne Treisman
Psychologist Anne Treisman, 2011 National Medal of Science Laureate, proposed revolutionary ideas that had an enormous impact inside and outside of psychology, including the Feature Integration Theory of attention, which inspired thousands of experiments in cognitive psychology, vision sciences, cognitive science, neuropsychology and cognitive neuroscience.
Warren Washington
National Medal of Science winner Warren Washington talks about what inspired him to become a scientist.
Shing-Tung Yau
National Medal of Science winner Shing-Tung Yau talks about the beauty of mathematics.
Richard N. Zare
Richard N. Zare, 1983 National Medal of Science medalist who received it in 1985, discussed his contributions to chemistry and molecular spectroscopy.
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Any opinions, findings, conclusions or recommendations presented in this material are only those of the presenter grantee/researcher, author, or
agency employee; and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.