A University of Wisconsin professor was elected to the governing body of the National Academy of Sciences earlier this month, joining a very elite group of scientists and engineers.
UW biochemistry professor Judith Kimble was elected by the NAS to the 17-member council that oversees the operations of the academy.
According to UW spokesperson Terry Devitt, Kimble is a very esteemed biologist who is also a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator. He added she receives funding from HHMI to study biological development regulators using nematodes as models.
Devitt said Kimble will begin her term on the council July 1.
According to Devitt, people have to be nominated by NAS members and then elected before being allowed to join the academy.
?It?s like a lifetime achievement award,? Devitt said. ?Only top scientists are in the academy.?
He added while Kimble is the only UW faculty member on the NAS Council, the university is well-represented overall in the academy.
?UW-Madison has more members of the academy than just about any institute in the world,? Devitt said. ?The university probably has close to 50 members.?
UW professor of genetics Jim Crow is a colleague of Kimble and a member of the NAS. He said the academy is ?frequently called on by the government to do studies on questions of some importance, and these studies have quite a bit of influence.?
Crow said it is a big deal to be elected to the council, but he believes Kimble can handle it.
?It?s, of course, an honor,? Kimble said. ?It involves a little bit of work, but I think she?s up to it. I have nothing but good to say for her. I?m very impressed with her conscientiousness and her intelligence.?
Crow gave an example of the importance of the work the NAS does, saying he was once the chair of a committee contracted to study the use of DNA for criminal investigations.
According to the NAS website, the academy was started by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863 to be the scientific research arm of the government. The NAS currently has more than 2,000 members in the U.S. and 350 foreign correspondents nationwide.
