May 18, 2004

UCSB Physicist Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Gail Gallessich

Guenter Ahlers, professor of physics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, has been elected a Fellow of the prestigious American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Ahlers is an experimental condensed matter physicist known for many contributions to the field. He joined the UCSB faculty in 1979.

"I feel honored, delighted, and humbled by my election to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences," Ahlers said. "Election to this Academy is particularly meaningful because of the breadth of its membership, which covers nearly all fields of intellectual endeavor, and because of the large scope of its activities, which addresses critical social as well as scientific issues.

"Recognitions, such as election to the American Academy, are bestowed upon

individuals; but in many cases they are the result of the collective effort of a large group of talented people," he added. "I have been very fortunate throughout my career to have had the opportunity to interact closely with numerous other scientists in my field. I would not be where I am now without the benefit of these stimulating relationships. But above all, many of the scientific accomplishments that are recognized by my election are the result of a collaborative effort with many students and post-doctoral scholars."

There are 178 new Fellows and 24 new Foreign Honorary Members elected to Academy membership in 2004. The 202 men and women are world-renowned leaders in scholarship, business, the arts, and public affairs. This year's new Fellows and Foreign Honorary Members include Leonore Annenberg, president of the Annenberg Foundation; Richard C. Holbrooke, vice chairman of Perseus LLC and former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations; Philippe De Montebello, director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art; Paul S. Sarbanes, U.S. senator; and Timothy E. Wirth, president of the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

"I am honored to welcome these outstanding and influential individuals to the nation's oldest and most illustrious learned society," said Academy President Patricia Meyer Spacks in announcing the new Fellows. "These new members have made extraordinary contributions to their fields and disciplines through their commitment to the advancement of scholarly and creative work in every field and profession."

Election to the Academy has always been one of the highest honors in the United States. The Academy has elected as Fellows and Foreign Honorary Members the finest minds and most influential leaders from each generation, including George Washington and Ben Franklin in the eighteenth century, Daniel Webster and Ralph Waldo Emerson in the nineteenth, and Albert Einstein and Winston Churchill in the twentieth. "The American Academy is unique among academies for its breadth and scope," said Leslie C. Berlowitz, the Academy's Executive Officer. "Throughout its history, the Academy has gathered individuals with diverse perspectives to participate in studies and projects focusing on advancing intellectual thought and constructive action. We know that this year's members will continue the Academy's tradition of cherishing knowledge in service to society."

The Academy was founded in 1780 by John Adams, James Bowdoin, John Hancock, and other scholar-patriots "to cultivate every art and science which may tend to advance the interest, honor, dignity, and happiness of a free, independent, and virtuous people."

The unique structure of the American Academy allows the Academy to conduct interdisciplinary studies on international security, social policy, education, and the humanities that draw on the range of academic and intellectual disciplines of its members. The current membership of over 4,500 includes more than 150 Nobel laureates and 50 Pulitzer Prize winners.

The Academy will welcome this year's new Fellows and Foreign Honorary Members at its annual Induction Ceremony in October at the Academy's headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

About UC Santa Barbara

The University of California, Santa Barbara is a leading research institution that also provides a comprehensive liberal arts learning experience. Our academic community of faculty, students, and staff is characterized by a culture of interdisciplinary collaboration that is responsive to the needs of our multicultural and global society. All of this takes place within a living and learning environment like no other, as we draw inspiration from the beauty and resources of our extraordinary location at the edge of the Pacific Ocean.