Science in Society - NYAS

*Three young scientists at leading research institutions in Israel will each be awarded US$100,000 for their groundbreaking scientific research*

Jerusalem | April 3, 2023 – The Blavatnik Family Foundation, the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, and The New York Academy of Sciences, announced today the Laureates of the 2023 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel.

This year’s Laureates, who will each receive US$100,000, are:

Shai Carmi, PhD (Life Sciences) – The Hebrew University of Jerusalem – Recognized for fundamental contributions to the fields of population and medical genetics. In medical genetics, he has reported the first evaluations of a new technology for genetic testing of preimplantation embryos for complex (adult) diseases and traits. Through his groundbreaking work in population genetics, he has rewritten the demographic history of medieval Ashkenazi Jews.
Rina Rosenzweig, PhD (Chemistry) – Weizmann Institute of Science – Recognized for discovering the regulatory mechanism by which a particular class of proteins, “chaperone” proteins, drive the innate ability of our cells to prevent and reverse protein aggregation—a phenomena associated with many neurodegenerative conditions including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s diseases. Harnessing and amplifying natural methods to reverse protein aggregation in cells paves the way to treatments for these conditions.
Zvika Brakerski, PhD (Physical Sciences & Engineering) – Weizmann Institute of Science – Recognized for developing the first efficient encryption algorithm that allows cloud computers to perform computations on encrypted data without the need to first decrypt them. His algorithm has enormous potential to improve the security of cloud computing. In addition, he has also developed new cryptography algorithms to verify the output of quantum computations.

Recognizing Innovative Scientists

The Blavatnik Awards recognize outstanding, innovative scientists at the early stages of their careers for both their extraordinary achievements and their promise for future discoveries. The prizes are awarded to researchers aged 42 and younger for groundbreaking work in the disciplines of Life Sciences, Chemistry, and Physical Sciences & Engineering. The Blavatnik Awards in Israel sit alongside their international counterparts, the Blavatnik National Awards and Blavatnik Regional Awards in the United States, and the Blavatnik Awards in the United Kingdom.

The 2023 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel will be conferred at a ceremony held at the Peres Center for Peace & Innovation in Tel Aviv-Jaffa in June 2023. On June 6, 2023, from 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM IDT, the Laureates will present their research at a free public symposium at the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History at Tel Aviv University. You can learn more about this event HERE.

The Laureates will join a cadre of young scientists from across Israel who have been honored by the Blavatnik Awards in Israel since the launch of the Awards in 2017. In addition, the Laureates will become part of the international Blavatnik Science Scholars community, whose recipients will have been awarded prizes totaling US$15.4 million by the close of 2023. Approximately 60 percent of all recipients are immigrants to the country in which they were recognized. Moreover, honorees hail from 52 countries across six continents, reflecting the fact that groundbreaking science is a global enterprise.

“Israel’s science and technology improves lives and constantly expands the boundaries of discovery,” said Len Blavatnik, Founder and Chairman of Access Industries and Head of the Blavatnik Family Foundation. “We are proud to honor these exceptional young scientists and their significant contributions to the global scientific community.”

From the Academy Presidents

Nicholas B. Dirks, President and CEO of The New York Academy of Sciences, said “Science and technology are both considered Israel’s most developed sectors, which follows from the fact that Israel’s universities are training some of the most talented scientists in the world. On behalf of The New York Academy of Sciences, we are proud to recognize the outstanding science and scientists represented by the 2023 Blavatnik Awards in Israel Laureates, including the first Laureate from Hebrew University of Jerusalem. We congratulate them and their institutions.”

Professor David Harel, President of The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, said “Today, more than ever, we value the continuing collaboration with the Blavatnik Family Foundation and The New York Academy of Sciences to maintain the tradition of bestowing these distinguished awards upon outstanding young scientists in Israel. It is crucial to continue to support and invest in Israel’s next generation of scientists, both for the benefit of the international scientific community and to maintain the status of Israeli science in the forefront of the global research world.”

During the nomination period for the 2023 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel, 40 nominations were received from eight universities across the country. Members of the Awards’ Scientific Advisory Council, which includes Nobel Laureates, Professors Aaron Ciechanover and David Gross and Professor Sir Richard Roberts, along with former Chairman of the Israel Space Agency, Professor Isaac Ben-Israel, were also invited to submit nominations. Three distinguished juries—composed of leading scientists representing the three disciplinary categories and led by Israel Academy members—selected the 2023 Laureates.

About the Laureates

Life Sciences:

Shai Carmi, PhD, Associate Professor, the Faculty of Medicine, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Prof. Shai Carmi uses genetic data and mathematical modeling to illustrate the past and inform the future. His research combines data analysis and algorithms to fill in gaps in human history and improve methods for genetic testing.

DNA can teach us about the history of a population. Carmi’s work has focused on developing methods that use genetic data to understand the current and past demography of isolated populations. Through the pioneering analysis of DNA sequences from present-day and 14^th-century Ashkenazi Jews, Carmi’s work discovered a previously unknown division among the medieval population and estimated how remarkably small the population remained throughout the Middle Ages.

Several recent studies have identified genetic variants associated with disease, suggesting that DNA can serve as an indicator of future disease risk. Carmi is spearheading the application of genetic risk prediction techniques in Israel, in hopes of identifying high-risk individuals and informing efforts of personalized screening and prevention.

In reproductive medicine, Carmi and his colleagues have developed affordable and accurate methods for preimplantation genetic testing on whole-genome sequencing of IVF embryos. This technique may be able to screen embryos not only for severe childhood diseases but also for “complex” adult diseases, such as heart attack, cancers, schizophrenia, diabetes, or Crohn’s disease. Carmi showed that screening embryos for complex diseases could result, under some circumstances, in significant risk reductions for the future children. Importantly, Carmi is also leading discussions of ethical, social, and clinical difficulties associated with the implementation of this technology.

Chemistry:

Rina Rosenzweig, PhD, Senior Scientist, Department of Chemical and Structural Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science

The healthy function of our bodies’ cells relies on the carefully orchestrated interactions of thousands of function-specific proteins. When these interactions break down because proteins misfold or aggregate, severe neurodegenerative conditions like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s diseases can occur. Dr. Rosenzweig is uncovering the secrets behind our cells’ innate quality control system, molecular chaperones: a specific class of proteins that assists other proteins to fold, refold, and repair themselves. Rosenzweig has developed deep insight into how specific molecular chaperones prevent and reverse protein misfolding and aggregation on an atomic level. This knowledge led to her landmark discovery of how two specific molecular chaperones are triggered to break up protein aggregations associated with Parkinson’s disease. The discovery of this “molecular switch” will hopefully lead to the development of novel therapeutic agents that target Parkinson’s and other aggregation-related disorders.

Her work goes beyond neurodegenerative diseases for applications related to cancer. Rosenzweig recently demonstrated specific modulations to molecular chaperones that could inhibit cancer cell growth without impacting other functions, potentially offering new cancer treatments with far fewer side effects.

Physical Sciences & Engineering:

Zvika Brakerski, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics, Weizmann Institute of Science

Prof. Brakerski is a pioneer in cryptography. He has continually introduced novel cryptographic solutions with far-reaching practical implications on the security of cloud computing and quantum computing. Brakerski developed the first efficient encryption algorithm that allows computers to directly perform computations on encrypted data without the need to first decrypt them. In other words, the cloud computers do not know the data they are processing at all. His algorithm, dubbed FHE (fully homomorphic encryption), has huge potential to improve the security of cloud computing, and is now developed and implemented by many companies worldwide.

He has also realized several major breakthroughs related to the use of cryptography in quantum computing. Brakerski’s work laid the foundation to construct various building blocks that are frequently used to build quantum cryptographic protocols.

In addition, he showed how a classical computing system can “control” the behavior of a quantum computer using cryptography. This may allow us to develop secure “cloud quantum-computers” where the quantum cloud can be supervised by the classical user.

About the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists

The Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists, established by the Blavatnik Family Foundation in 2007 and independently administered by The New York Academy of Sciences, began by identifying outstanding scientific talent in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. In 2014, the Blavatnik National Awards were created to recognize faculty-rank scientists throughout the United States. In 2017, the Awards were further expanded to honor faculty-rank scientists in the United Kingdom and Israel. For updates about the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists, please visit blavatnikawards.org or follow us on Twitter and Facebook @BlavatnikAwards.

About the Blavatnik Family Foundation

The Blavatnik Family Foundation supports world-renowned educational, scientific, cultural, and charitable institutions in the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, and across the globe. Led by Sir Leonard Blavatnik, founder and chairman of Access Industries, the Foundation advances and promotes innovation, discovery, and creativity to benefit the whole of society. Over the past decade, the Foundation has contributed more than $1 billion to over 250 organizations. See more at blavatnikfoundation.org

About The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities

The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities is Israel’s flagship scientific institution. It was established by law in 1961 and acts as a national focal point for Israeli scholarship in all branches of the sciences, social sciences, and humanities. The Academy’s membership comprises 141 of Israel’s most distinguished scientists and scholars in its two sections―the Sciences Section and the Humanities Section. It is tasked with promoting Israeli scientific excellence, advising the government on scientific matters of national interest, publishing scholarly research of lasting merit, and maintaining active contact with the broader international scientific and scholarly community. For more information about The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, please visit: academy.ac.il.

For further information, please contact:
Liel Edry: liel@kamir-e.com +972-50-8655-305

Announcing the “2023 Blavatnik Awards in Israel Symposium”

How can DNA teach us about the history of populations? What is protein folding and how does it relate to neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s diseases? How can we make cloud computing more secure? The three recipients of the 2023 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel will answer these questions and more in a morning of free and exciting lectures, on Tuesday, June 6, 2023 in Tel Aviv, Israel.

The Blavatnik Family Foundation, the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, and The New York Academy of Sciences invite the public to a series of lectures from the forefront of Israeli research at the 2023 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel Symposium on Tuesday, June 6, 2023, at the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, Tel Aviv University. The symposium will be in-person and in English.

Intended for science enthusiasts, students, and scientists of all ages—from high school students to professionals—participants will have the opportunity to interact with the Laureates during Q&A sessions and enjoy a lunch networking reception at the conclusion of the event. Attendance is free and open to the public, but registration is required.

The three 2023 Blavatnik Awards in Israel Laureates will present their research at the symposium:

Professor Shai Carmi of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem received the Blavatnik Award in Life Sciences for his fundamental contributions to the scientific fields of population and medical genetics.
Chemistry Laureate, Dr. Rina Rosenzweig of the Weizmann Institute of Science, discovered how “chaperone” proteins can prevent and reverse protein aggregation—a phenomena associated with many neurodegenerative conditions including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s diseases.
Professor Zvika Brakerski of the Weizmann Institute of Science, this year’s Physical Sciences & Engineering Laureate, developed the first efficient encryption algorithm that allows cloud computers to perform computations on encrypted data without the need to first decrypt them, vastly improving the potential for cloud computing security.

The Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel are given every year to three early-career Israeli scientists aged 42 and younger for their groundbreaking research, their extraordinary achievements and their demonstrated potential for future scientific discoveries. Each Laureate in the categories of Life Sciences, Chemistry, and Physical Sciences & Engineering is awarded USD $100,000. The Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel are given alongside the international prizes that are awarded each year in the United States and the United Kingdom.

For more information on the Blavatnik Awards, please visit the website.

The 2023 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel Symposium

Tuesday, June 6, 2023
10.00 A.M.–1:00 P.M. Israel Daylight Time
The Steinhardt Museum of Natural Histor,
Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
Entrance is free with advance registration.

For more information and to register for the event, please visit this link HERE.

In a First, All Three Laureates from the Blavatnik Awards in the UK Are Women

“So tonight, we also celebrate the progress that has been made to allow women in STEM to flourish — there is more work to do, but these awardees illustrate the bounties that an ever-inclusive work environment brings to society.”

Published March 16, 2023

By Kamala Murthy

The Blavatnik Family Foundation and The New York Academy of Sciences celebrated the sixth annual Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the United Kingdom with an awards ceremony and gala dinner on February 28, 2023. The event returned to the historic Banqueting House in Whitehall, London, where it was previously held in 2020 and 2021. The celebration showcased the nine honorees of the 2023 Blavatnik Awards in the UK.

The new Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford and renowned neuroscientist, Professor Irene Tracey, CBE, FMedSci served as the 2023 Presenter. Over 140 guests attended the ceremony, including prominent leaders in science, academia, government, business, and past Blavatnik Awards Laureates. Distinguished guests included:

The current Ambassador of Israel to the United Kingdom, Tzipi Hotovely;
British Diplomat Sir Michael Pakenham;
Nobel Laureates Prof. John O’Keefe and Sir Paul Nurse;
Director of the Science Museum Group, Roger Highfield;
Founding Dean of the Blavatnik School of Government, Prof. Ngaire Woods;
British physicist and a pioneer of string theory, Prof. Michael B. Green;
President of the European Research Council, Prof. Maria Leptin;
President Emeritus of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Dr. Walter Massey;
Chair of Surgery at Imperial College London, the Royal Marsden Hospital and the Institute of Cancer Research, Prof. The Lord Darzi of Denham;
CEO of Access Industries, Lincoln Benet; and
EVP of the Blavatnik Family Foundation and Access Industries, Peter Thorén.

During her opening remarks, Professor Tracey commented on the three Laureates: “I’m particularly proud, as a woman of science myself, that, for the first time in the history of the Blavatnik Awards in the United Kingdom, we have three women Laureates! So tonight, we also celebrate the progress that has been made to allow women in STEM to flourish—there is more work to do, but these awardees illustrate the bounties that an ever-inclusive work environment brings to society—when everyone is given the chance to thrive, everyone benefits.”

In commenting on the Award’s impact, President and CEO of The New York Academy of Sciences, Nicholas B. Dirks said “the Blavatnik Awards program doesn’t just benefit its honorees, but all of us. In their relatively short lifetimes, they’ve already changed the world. How much more will they change all of our lives? I, for one, can’t wait to find out!”

For each Award category—Physical Sciences & Engineering, Chemistry, and Life Sciences—two Finalists were each awarded prizes of £30,000, and one Laureate was awarded £100,000. As each honoree was recognized, the audience viewed a film introducing their groundbreaking research before they were presented with their Blavatnik Awards medal. 2022 Blavatnik Awards in the UK Laureate, Prof. Matthew Brookes from the University of Nottingham was also recognized during the night, as he was unable to attend last year’s ceremony.

Laureates

Katie Doores, DPhil (Life Sciences)—King’s College London

Susan Perkin, DPhil (Chemistry)—University of Oxford

Clare Burrage, PhD (Physical Sciences & Engineering)—University of Nottingham

Finalists

Andrew Saxe, PhD (Life Sciences)—University College London (UCL)

Pontus Skoglund, PhD (Life Sciences)—The Francis Crick Institute

Jesko Köhnke, PhD (Chemistry)—University of Glasgow

Andrew L. Lawrence, DPhil (Chemistry)—The University of Edinburgh

Jade Alglave, PhD (Physical Sciences & Engineering)—University College London (UCL) and Arm

James A. Screen, PhD (Physical Sciences & Engineering)—University of Exeter

The Laureates all gave short scientific talks after receiving their medals. Physical Sciences & Engineering Finalist, Prof. James Screen was unable to attend due to research commitments in Australia and was honored in absentia.

The ceremony concluded with the Blavatnik Awards tradition of making a “Toast to Science.” The following day, the honorees shared their cutting-edge research in a Blavatnik Awards public symposium “Catalysing Change: 9 Young Scientists Transforming Our World.”

To learn more about the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists, visit blavatnikawards.org.

The International Science Reserve Recognized with Anthem Award for Crisis Response Partnerships

The International Science Reserve (ISR) has won an Anthem Award for its ongoing work to create a global scientific network focused on urgent disaster response.

New York, NY — The International Science Reserve (ISR), an initiative of The New Academy of Sciences, today announced that it has won an Anthem Award for its ongoing work with private and public partners to create a global scientific network focused on urgent disaster response.

The Anthem Awards celebrate purpose and mission-driven work by people, companies and organizations worldwide.

The ISR was launched in early 2022 with partners and collaborators including IBM, Google, Pfizer, UL Solutions and the National Science Foundation.

“When a major crisis or disaster hits, the International Science Reserve wants to be able to mobilize the most effective scientific response—by connecting any scientist anywhere with the best resources available in both private and public sectors,” said Dr. Mila Rosenthal, Executive Director of the International Science Reserve.

“It’s a vision that evolved from the experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic—which underlined the need for a more systematic, global approach to sharing scientific resources in response to threats that go far beyond national boundaries. We thank the Anthem Awards for acknowledging the importance of this collaborative work.”

Over the past two years, the International Science Reserve has rapidly seeded a network of over 1,500 scientists from 90+ countries, and worked with its partners to map available resources including high-performance computing, geospatial-temporal data sets, and machine learning or AI for terrain mapping and visualization. Most recently, the ISR announced that it has partnered with IBM to put advanced data and AI tools directly into the hands of researchers during crisis.

The International Science Reserve received the Anthem Award for partnership and collaboration within the Responsible Technology category, which celebrates efforts to ensure that digital technology has a positive impact on society.

About The International Science Reserve

The International Science Reserve is an open network of scientists and scientific institutions, bringing together specialized technical resources for scientists to collaborate on preparing and responding to complex and urgent global crises. In transnational health emergencies and climate-related disasters, researchers in the ISR network will work together to help people and protect communities. Learn more about joining us: www.isr.nyas.org

About The Anthem Awards

Launched in 2021 by The Webby Awards, The Anthem Awards honors the purpose & mission-driven work of people, companies and organizations worldwide. By amplifying the voices that spark global change, we’re defining a new benchmark for impactful work that inspires others to take action in their own communities. The Anthem Awards honors work across seven core causes: Diversity; Equity & Inclusion; Education; Art & Culture; Health; Human & Civil Rights; Humanitarian Action & Services; Responsible Technology; and Sustainability, Environment & Climate. Founded in partnership with the Ad Council, Born This Way Foundation, Feeding America, Glaad, Mozilla, NAACP, NRDC, WWF, and XQ.

Nine UK-based Scientists Receive the Esteemed Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the UK

Researchers using ancient DNA to tackle future challenges, uncovering the mystery of dark energy, and understanding the origin of cell life through liquids.

Using ancient DNA to learn how to tackle challenges of the future
Uncovering the mystery of dark energy; one of the biggest challenges in modern cosmology
Using liquids to understand the origin of cellular life
Top prize in each category awarded to a woman scientist

January 18, 2023—London, UK: Today, the Blavatnik Family Foundation and The New York Academy of Sciences have announced the recipients of the 2023 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the United Kingdom. Now in its sixth year, the Awards are the largest unrestricted prize available to UK scientists aged 42 or younger. Internationally recognized among the scientific community, the Blavatnik Awards are instrumental in expanding the engagement and recognition of young scientists, and are providing the support and encouragement needed to drive scientific innovation for the next generation.

This year’s Laureates, who will each receive £100,000 ($121,500.00) in unrestricted funds, are:

Susan Perkin, DPhil (Chemistry)—University of Oxford
Clare Burrage, PhD (Physical Sciences & Engineering)—University of Nottingham
Katie Doores, DPhil (Life Sciences)—King’s College London

It is the first time in the history of the Blavatnik Awards in the UK that all three Laureates are women scientists.

In each of the three categories—Chemistry, Physical Sciences & Engineering, and Life Sciences—a jury of leading scientists from across the UK also selected two Finalists, who will each receive £30,000 ($24,676.50).

The 2023 Finalists are:

Jesko Köhnke, PhD (Chemistry)—University of Glasgow
Andrew L. Lawrence, DPhil (Chemistry)—The University of Edinburgh
Jade Alglave, PhD (Physical Sciences & Engineering)—University College London (UCL) and ARM
James A. Screen, PhD (Physical Sciences & Engineering)—University of Exeter
Andrew Saxe, PhD (Life Sciences)—University College London (UCL)
Pontus Skoglund, PhD (Life Sciences)—The Francis Crick Institute

The honorees are recognized for their research, which is already transforming technology and our understanding of the world.

“I am proud to recognize and support these outstanding young scientists,” said Sir Leonard Blavatnik, Founder and Chairman of Access Industries and head of the Blavatnik Family Foundation. “Their pioneering research leads the way for future discoveries that will improve the world and benefit all humankind,” Blavatnik said.

Professor Nicholas B. Dirks, President and CEO of The New York Academy of Sciences and Chair of the Awards’ Scientific Advisory Council noted, “From our former Academy leaders, eminent academics including Charlotte Friend and Margaret Mead, to other renowned Academy members over the years such as Marie Curie, Barbara McClintock, Rosalyn Yallow and Gertrude Elion, our Academy has always supported the representation and success of women in science. We are accordingly so very proud to see these three women scientists named as the 2023 Laureates. On behalf of the Academy, we are delighted to administer the Blavatnik Awards in the UK in its sixth year and pleased to see new UK institutions represented among this year’s honored institutions.”

About the Laureates

Professor Susan Perkin, a physical chemist from the University of Oxford, has been named the Chemistry Laureate for experiments performed with a custom instrument called a Surface Force Balance (SFB) that enables the study of liquid matter, soft matter, and ionic liquids and their interactions; helping chemists comprehend the mechanical, optical, electrostatic, and dynamic properties of fluids.

Professor Clare Burrage, a cosmologist at the University of Nottingham, was named Laureate in Physical Sciences & Engineering. She studies questions and phenomena around dark energy in the Universe, one of the biggest challenges in modern cosmology. Her research has allowed cosmologists to get one step closer to detecting dark energy, and to revealing its nature for the first time.

Dr Katie Doores, a virologist from King’s College London was named the Life Sciences Laureate. She studies how the immune system responds to infection to inform the development of vaccines against biomedically important viruses. Through this research she aims to aid our preparedness for potential future pandemics.

Further details of this year’s Laureates and Finalists are available below.

The 2023 Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in the UK received 77 nominations from 43 academic and research institutions across the UK. The Blavatnik Awards in the UK sit alongside their global counterparts, the Blavatnik National Awards and the Blavatnik Regional Awards in the United States and the Blavatnik Awards in Israel, all of which honor and support exceptional early-career scientists. By the close of 2023, the Blavatnik Awards will have awarded prizes totaling US$15.4 million. About 60 percent of all recipients are immigrants to the country in which they were recognized; honorees hail from 52 countries across six continents, reflecting the Blavatnik Family Foundation’s recognition that important science is a global enterprise.

The 2023 Blavatnik Awards in the UK Laureates and Finalists will be honored at a black-tie gala dinner and award ceremony at Banqueting House in Whitehall, London, on February 28, 2023; Professor Irene Tracey, the incoming Vice-Chancellor at the University of Oxford, will serve as ceremony presenter. The following day, on March 1, 2023 from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. GMT, the honorees will present their research with a series of short, interactive lectures at a free public symposium at the RSA House located at 8 John Adam St, London. To attend the symposium, click HERE to register.

Notes to Editors

To follow the progress of the Blavatnik Awards, please visit blavatnikawards.org or follow us on Facebook and Twitter(@BlavatnikAwards).

For further details about the 2023 Blavatnik Awards in the UK Laureates and Finalists, the Blavatnik Family Foundation, and the New York Academy of Sciences, please see below.

About the Laureates

Chemistry

Susan Perkin , DPhil, University of Oxford —Studies of electrolytes, from energy storage to biomolecular processes

As Professor of Physical Chemistry at the University of Oxford, Susan Perkin studies the intersection of physical chemistry, liquid matter, electrolytes, interfaces, and interaction forces.

She was recognized for experimental observations using a custom-built instrument that she modified, called the Surface Force Balance, to determine the mechanical, optical, electrostatic, and dynamic properties of fluids. Her findings reveal important information about liquids, leading to a range of outcomes from creating better grid storage for renewable energy to understanding the origin of cellular life.

Physical Sciences & Engineering

Clare Burrage , PhD, University of Nottingham —Uncovering the mystery of dark energy—one of the biggest challenges in modern cosmology

Looking at the universe, galaxies are not only re-collapsing, but they are beginning to fly apart with ever increasing speed. Whilst the solution to this mystery is almost unknown, nearly all attempts at an explanation introduce – dark energy. Professor of Physics at the University of Nottingham, Clare Burrage examines cosmology, dark energy, modified gravity, and new physics. She was recognized for theoretical predictions that have guided the development of entirely new experiments to probe the nature of dark energy—one of the biggest challenges in modern cosmology—in a compact, laboratory setting.

Life Sciences

Katie Doores , DPhil, King’s College London —Preparing the world for future pandemics

As a Reader in Molecular Virology at King’s College London, Virologist and Immunologist Katie Doores specializes in virology, immunology, and glycobiology (the study of the structure, biosynthesis, and biology of carbohydrates). She was recognized for paradigm-shifting discoveries in the characterization of antibody responses to viral infections, including the persistent and acute human infections HIV-1, hantaviruses, phleboviruses, and SARS-CoV-2.

About the Finalists

Chemistry

Jesko Köhnke , PhD, University of Glasgow —Using the power of enzymes to produce high value chemicals

Roughly 60% of all FDA-approved medicines are natural products or variations of them, including antibiotics and anti-cancer drugs. Natural products are chemicals produced by living organisms. Structural Biochemist Jesko Köhnke is Professor of Biological Chemistry at the University of Glasgow, where he investigates how life performs the complex chemical reactions leading to the formation of natural products. Professor Köhnke was recognized for using biochemistry and structural biology to study and exploit the biosynthesis of these valuable compounds. This research could be applied to make new molecules, which can be used to create diagnostics, smart materials, and therapies.

Andrew L. Lawrence, DPhil, The University of Edinburgh —Improving the science and art of synthetic chemistry by drawing inspiration from the natural world

Organic chemist and Professor of Organic Synthesis at The University of Edinburgh, Andrew L. Lawrence studies the crossroads of synthetic chemistry and the chemistry of biosynthetic pathways. He was recognized for elegant and efficient total syntheses of naturally occurring, bio-active molecules that hold promise for the development of treatments for various diseases.

Physical Sciences & Engineering

Jade Alglave, PhD, University College London (UCL) and ARM—Formalizing the communications of computer chips and operating systems

Computer scientist Jade Alglave works in the area of concurrency (executing multiple communications simultaneously) and semantics (which is the rigorous mathematical study of the meaning of computer programming languages). Alglave serves as Professor of Computer Science at UCL and is a Distinguished Engineer at ARM. She was recognized for her methodology to develop mathematical models of concurrent systems with the aid of a set of practical software tools (in tandem with Luc Maranget, INRIA), which has had significant impact on computer chips and operating systems.

James A. Screen , PhD, University of Exeter —Discovering if Arctic warming is to blame for extreme weather

Climate scientist James A. Screen studies atmosphere, ocean, and sea ice. At the University of Exeter, where he is a Professor of Climate Science, his research is transforming our understanding of the rapid climate warming in the Arctic and its effects on the global climate. The Arctic is warming three to four times faster than the global average, with potential impacts on weather patterns in places far-away from the Arctic. His work informs the United Nations and governments on these topics.

Life Sciences

Andrew Saxe, PhD, University College London (UCL) —Uncovering principles of learning in the brain, mind, and machines

Theoretical Neuroscientist Andrew Saxe serves as Joint Group Leader at the Gatsby Computational Neuroscience Unit & Sainsbury Wellcome Centre at UCL where his area of research focuses on neuroscience, deep learning, and psychology. Dr Saxe has made fundamental contributions to the study of deep neural networks that provide insight into representation learning—the method by which systems discover and organize knowledge—in artificial and natural systems.

Pontus Skoglund , PhD, The Francis Crick Institute—Using ancient DNA to learn how to tackle medical challenges of the future

Learning about how evolution responded to challenges such as climate change and infectious disease in the past might help scientists develop biomedicine for the future. As Group Leader at The Francis Crick Institute, Evolutionary Geneticist Pontus Skoglund studies ancient genomics, evolutionary, and human genetics. He was recognized for discoveries in the field of ancient and evolutionary genomics, including the development of methods to improve the quality of genetic information from archaeological remains and evidence used to determine when and where dogs were domesticated⁠.

About the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists

The Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists, established by the Blavatnik Family Foundation in the United States in 2007 and independently administered by The New York Academy of Sciences, began by identifying outstanding regional scientific talent in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. The Blavatnik National Awards were first awarded in 2014, and in 2017 the Awards were expanded to honor faculty-rank scientists in the United Kingdom and in Israel. For updates about the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists, please visit blavatnikawards.org or follow us on Twitter and Facebook (@BlavatnikAwards).

About the Blavatnik Family Foundation

The Blavatnik Family Foundation is an active supporter of world-renowned educational, scientific, cultural, and charitable institutions in the United States, the United Kingdom, Israel, and throughout the world. The Foundation is headed by Sir Leonard Blavatnik, a global industrialist and philanthropist and the founder and chairman of Access Industries, a privately held industrial group based in the US with broad strategic interests. See more at blavatnikfoundation.org.

Tata Sons and New York Academy of Sciences Announce Prize to Honour Scientists in India

The Tata Transformation Prize will recognize Indian scientists for research to solve societal needs and promote economic competitiveness

Mumbai, India | 4 January 2023 – Tata Sons and The New York Academy of Sciences today announced the Tata Transformation Prize to recognize and support promising scientists in India who are developing innovative technological solutions to critical societal challenges.

The new prize will be awarded each year to three scientists for innovations in each of three areas: food security, sustainability, and healthcare. Each winner will each receive INR 2 crores, and will be honoured at a ceremony in India in December.

“This prize will accelerate breakthrough innovations by the Indian scientific community,” said Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman of the Board of Tata Sons. “We hope this prize will help bring the transformational work of Indian scientists to light, reward them appropriately, and encourage them in taking solutions to market. The Tata Transformation Prize is one small way in which we will promote science and scientists to solve India’s national problems.”

Award Criteria

Applicants for the prize must be active researchers with a doctoral degree, or equivalent, and be employed by an eligible university, institute, or other research organization in India. Applicants must propose technologies addressing food security, sustainability, or healthcare challenges with a focus on digital and technological transformation. Prize winners will be scientists whose proposed innovations re-imagine traditional practices and business models, transform technological paradigms, improve public trust, and promote an open and connected world.

“Pathbreaking research takes place in India, resulting in important advances in science around the world,” said Nicholas B. Dirks, President and CEO of The New York Academy of Sciences. “This prize is focused not only on science, but on innovative discoveries that put science to work for the betterment of society, to solving major global challenges in three core areas. We are so pleased to be working with Tata, and Chairman N. Chandrasekaran, to support scientific and technical innovation in India. It will also raise national and international awareness of India’s strengths in scientific research and development.”

The Tata Transformation Prize is the latest in a series of prominent awards and scholarship programs the Academy and its partners present each year to accomplished early-career and established scientists around the world. These initiatives, along with education and professional development programs for students and young scientists, reflect the Academy’s broader commitment to strengthening and diversifying the pipeline for skilled and talented scientists globally.

Click here for more information about the Tata Transformation Prize.

About the Tata Group

Founded by Jamsetji Tata in 1868, the Tata Group is a global enterprise, headquartered in India, comprising 30 companies across ten verticals. The group operates in more than 100 countries across six continents, with a mission ‘To improve the quality of life of the communities we serve globally, through long-term stakeholder value creation based on Leadership with Trust’.

Tata Sons is the principal investment holding company and promoter of Tata companies. Sixty-six percent of the equity share capital of Tata Sons is held by philanthropic trusts, which support education, health, livelihood generation and art and culture.

In 2021-22, the revenue of Tata companies, taken together, was US $128 billion (INR 9.6 trillion). These companies collectively employ over 935,000 people.

Each Tata company or enterprise operates independently under the guidance and supervision of its own board of directors. There are 29 publicly-listed Tata enterprises with a combined market capitalisation of $311 billion (INR 23.6 trillion) as on March 31, 2022. Tata Group Companies include Tata Consultancy Services, Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Tata Chemicals, Tata Consumer Products, Titan, Tata Capital, Tata Power, Indian Hotels, Tata Communications, Tata Electronics, Air India and Tata Digital.

When Waters Rise: Cross-Border Science for Global Flood Response

Pedestrians navigate a flooded city street.

What role can scientific experts play in international flood prediction and response?

Published December 12, 2022

By ISR Staff

Around the world, flooding is wreaking havoc on people’s daily lives with increasing magnitude and frequency. Communities in Nigeria, Chad, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Cameroon are experiencing some of the worst floods in a decade, as they sweep across western and central African borders.

In Pakistan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Australia, and the United States—such as in Florida and Kentucky—communities have faced multiple dangerous and deadly floods in 2022. These unprecedented flood events have killed thousands of people, displaced millions, decimated farms and businesses, and destroyed homes and habitats.

The World Bank reports that about one and a half billion people are at risk from flooding, one-third of whom are living in poverty, making them more vulnerable to migration pressures and economic insecurity. While flooding can be a natural phenomenon that can help provide fertile soil and sustain wetlands, today’s floods are becoming more frequent, dangerous, and deadly, as a result of human-caused climate disruption and development in urban, coastal areas. 

When flood water crosses national borders, “transboundary floods” can be even more catastrophic without international cooperation around emergency management, such as early warning systems. In a recent Science Unusual webinar, hosted by the International Science Reserve, a group of panelists explored the role scientific and technical experts can play in large-scale, international flood prediction, prevention, preparation and response.

Speaking on the panel were:

Nora El-Gohary, Professor of Construction Engineering and Management, The Grainger College of Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Njoki Mwarumba, Assistant Professor of Emergency Management and Disaster, University of Nebraska Omaha
Anthony Torres, Chief Meteorologist and Head of Global Science Operations, Currently weather service
Campbell Watson, Senior Research Scientist – IBM Research, Global Lead, Accelerated Discovery—Climate & Sustainability
Ugochi Anyaka-Oluigbo, Environment and Conservation Journalist, Nigeria (Moderator)

Here are three big takeaways from the discussion:

1. Breaking down borders between social scientists and other types of scientists who study floods will lead to better outcomes for people and communities.

Njoki Mwarumba kicks off the discussion on why we need to break down siloes.

Nora El-Gohary on how scientists can help reduce the impacts of floods on infrastructure.

2. Using atmospheric data to predict flooding impacts is just the beginning. Protecting the most vulnerable requires a stronger analysis on how the atmosphere interacts with oceanic and local land systems, and human habitats.

Anthony Torres on where meteorology interacts with other disciplines and AI to predict floods.

3. Scientists should work to understand indigenous knowledge in order to better collaborate on early warning systems that save lives.

Njoki Mwarumba discusses the impact of leaving entire regions out of advances in technology, like early warning systems.

Anthony Torres on building two-way streets of communication between communities and scientists.

4. Artificial intelligence is enhancing our ability to predict and prepare for floods. But we must simplify access to increasingly complex data processes and improve their usage across borders.

Campbell Watson shares his thoughts on AI and its impact on flood modeling.

Campbell Watson discusses how IBM is researching and responding to global floods.

Ethics in Pediatric Research

An illustration of a teddy bear receiving medical care.

Recent progress in the understanding of human disease has led to an explosion in the number of new medicines and therapeutics available for adults — however, significantly fewer drugs are developed and evaluated specifically for children due to complex ethical and logistical issues. Listen to this podcast addressing topics on how to provide children with evidence-based treatments while protecting them from inappropriate research.

This podcast highlights discussions from the Ethical Considerations in Research for Pediatric Populations symposium presented by The New York Academy of Sciences and NYU Grossman School of Medicine and is made available thanks to funding provided by Johnson & Johnson.

2022 Blavatnik National Awards Ceremony

Awardees raise their glasses in a toast to science.

“The freedom to take risks, asking big, complicated or leftfield questions without worrying about failure; and being able to do this near the beginning of your career…that is exactly the spirit behind these awards.”

Published October 13, 2022

By Kamala Murthy

The Blavatnik Family Foundation and The New York Academy of Sciences hosted the eighth annual Blavatnik National Awards for Young Scientists Ceremony at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City on September 19, 2022. This event honored the 2022 Blavatnik National Awards Finalists and Laureates. Professor Michael W. Young, 2017 Nobel Prize Laureate from the Rockefeller University, served as ceremony presenter. Some of New York’s leading figures in science, academia, and philanthropy attended the ceremony including author and Pulitzer Prize winner, Siddhartha Mukherjee and Executive and Artistic Director of Carnegie Hall Sir Clive Gillinson.

During his opening remarks, Prof. Young called the Blavatnik Awards essential to risk-taking, innovative science: “Do we want our freshest minds playing it safe? Or exercising their creativity and scientific imaginations without limits and at their full capacity? The freedom to take risks, asking big, complicated or leftfield questions without worrying about failure; and being able to do this near the beginning of your career… that is exactly the spirit behind these awards. Which is why I said earlier, the Blavatnik Awards are not only valuable – they are essential.” He concluded by introducing the President of The New York Academy of Sciences, Professor Nicholas B. Dirks.

The Influence of the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists

Prof. Dirks remarked on the influence the Blavatnik Awards have made since their inception in 2007. “With the program in its 16^th year, I would like to take this moment to reflect on its extraordinary reach and impact – which extends far beyond the walls of laboratories and universities. In fact, I’d say the work of Blavatnik honorees has personally touched the lives of each of us here tonight, in ways we may not even realize.”

He reflected with a short slide presentation on the contributions of fifteen past Blavatnik Awardees’ research that have gone on to produce groundbreaking discoveries—from improving COVID testing to consulting on blockbuster motion picture films and designing therapeutic video games that treat ADHD, to developing new fabrics that reduce the need for air conditioning.

Young returned to the stage to announce the 2022 Blavatnik National Awards Laureates by introducing a film on each Laureate, followed by calling them to the stage to receive their medal from Mr. Len Blavatnik, Founder and Chairman, Blavatnik Family Foundation. Then each Laureate gave a scientific presentation at the podium.

Life Sciences

2022 Laureate in Life Sciences, Elaine Y. Hsiao, Ph.D., a neurobiologist at the University of California, Los Angeles, gave a talk on the connection between the gut microbiome and the nervous system, and how her discoveries could help improve maternal-fetal health and predict risk for neurodevelopmental disorders.

Chemistry

Hosea M. Nelson, Ph.D., a synthetic chemist at the California Institute of Technology, spoke about his technique that helps organic chemists design and synthesize new molecules. Nelson has pioneered microcrystal electron diffraction (MicroED) as a tool to determine the positions of atoms within small molecules with unprecedented detail. Resulting insights can help accelerate development of new drugs and commercial chemicals.

Physical Sciences & Engineering

Conor Walsh, Ph.D., a biomedical and mechanical engineer at Harvard University, shared his research in the development of a new class of lightweight, flexible and soft wearable robot technologies. This could dramatically improve mobility for disabled people, including people with ALS and those who have experienced a stroke.

The ceremony concluded with the Blavatnik Awards tradition of making a “Toast to Science”

To learn more about the Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists, visit blavatnikawards.org.

Prof. Nicholas Dirks highlights the research of 2017 National Awards Laureate Feng Zhang.

How to Address our Climate Communications Crisis

People holding signs advocating for science.

From pandemics to climate change, it’s no longer a question whether effective science communication is necessary.

Published September 15, 2022

By ISR Staff

From the COVID-19 pandemic to climate change, it’s no longer a question whether effective science communication is necessary to deal with crisis and avert further disaster. The way the scientific community communicates urgent messages can make or break how the public responds to a crisis. Ineffective communications result in inertia or skepticism – and have reduced our collective ability to respond to and reduce the impacts of crisis.

Dr. Sweta Chakraborty understood the importance of strategic communications early in her career as a scientist, long before many researchers began to reckon with the ways disinformation and misinformation are weaponized across the globe to prevent action on crises such as climate change.

Today, Dr. Chakraborty’s work is motivated by the need for clear, credible, science communication to urgently and proactively manage the risks that threaten human security and well-being. She is currently the US President of Operations at We Don’t Have Time, and a globally recognized risk and behavioral scientist. She is a trusted authority on proactive preparedness to mitigate against the impacts of climate change.

Dr. Chakraborty is an advisor to the International Science Reserve and strengthens the ISR with lessons she has gained from advising scientists, policymakers, and other experts on science communications.

Dr. Chakraborty recommends that scientists who care about responding to the multitude of crises our world faces must strengthen their ability to effectively communicate. Experts who are clear and pitch their messages for the audiences they need to reach will ultimately have stronger results. And we will all be better off for it.

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