Six Indian Americans, who have made to the list of 106
scientists and engineers, with the highest US government prize for young
independent researchers will be honored by US President Barack Obama.
People selected are Milind Kulkarni (Purdue University),
Kiran Musunuru (Harvard University), Sachin Patel (Vanderbilt University
Medical Centre), Vikram Shyam (NASA), Rahul Mangharam (University of
Pennsylvania) and Shwetak Patel (University of Washington). These are selected
for the Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers.
Obama said that these scientists are leading by confronting
and challenging problems from climate change to our health and wellness. Obama
will present the awards at a ceremony this spring.
He congratulated them and said that he wants to encourage
them to continue to serve as an example of the incredible promise and ingenuity
of the American people
These awards were established in 1996 in order to highlight
the role that government takes in encouraging innovation to grow economy and at
the same time, tackle great challenges.
Some of the innovations include-
An associate professor with the School of Electrical and
Computer Engineering at Purude University, Milind Kulkarni, in his research,
focuses on Programming Languages and Compilers that support efficient
programming and high performance on emerging complex architectures.
Another one- Dr. Vikram Shyam who is among the six NASA
scientists to receive this award did a technical innovation in fundamental
aeronautics, at NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. Shwetak Patel,
Washington Research Foundation Entrepreneurship Endowed Professor in Computer
Science and Engineering and Electrical Engineering, Patel, is a nationally
recognised expert in sensor systems research.
From the University of Pennsylvania, Rahul Mangharam was
selected for inventing a new formal methodology to test and verify the correct
operation of medical device software, saving lives and reducing care costs.
Dr. Kiran Musunuru who is an Assistant Professor of Stem
Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard University and Associate Physician at
Brigham and Women's Hospital, has developed a "genome editing"
approach for permanently reducing cholesterol levels in mice.
Sachin Patel, an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, and
Molecular Physiology and Biophysics Vanderbilt University Medical Centre,
through his research, is offering a glimmer of hope to alcoholics who find it
hard to remain sober.
As per France Cordova, The National Science Foundation
Director, awardees are talented scientists and engineers. They are teachers who
are developing new generations of outstanding scientists and engineers and
ensuring this nation is a leading innovator.
Tags: Indian Americans
Career Awards
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