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The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

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Three researchers receive presidential award

Two University of Wisconsin professors and a recent graduate will receive a presidential award for their research in varying scientific fields.

According to a UW statement, Samuel Zelinka, a 2009 UW alumnus with a doctorate from the College of Engineering, will be awarded a Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers from the White House along with two UW professors – Michael Arnold and Daniel Frederickson.

PECASE is meant to “honor and support the extraordinary achievements of young professionals at the outset of their independent research careers in the fields of science and technology,” according to a statement from the program.

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The three Wisconsin researchers are among 94 recipients nationally to be given the Early Career Award this year, according to the statement.

Zelinka is a researcher at the Forest Products Lab in Madison and studies corrosion of metals in wood, hoping to develop a better way to use metal fasteners with wood via new preservative treatments. He was nominated by the Department of Agriculture, the UW statement said.

Michael Arnold joined the UW faculty to teach both materials science and engineering in 2008, the statement said. His research on nano-carbon materials was nominated by the Department of Defense for its capabilities in solar cells for generating electricity.

Arnold said he studies two materials – carbon nanotubes, which are only a nanometer in diameter, and graphene, which are one-atom thick sheets of graphite.

These carbon products can be tuned to detect a wide range of wavelengths, allowing them to improve military infrared tracking, among other uses, Arnold said.

Fredrickson came to Madison in 2009 from the University of Stockholm and currently teaches chemistry, according to the statement. He studies bonding within different metal alloys and was recognized by the Department of Energy.

By combining different groups of elements, Frederickson watches how they react in what he calls chemical frustration.

“We watch that frustration to try to understand how the two metals chose their inter-metallic structures,” he said in the statement. “If we can control that, we can create new materials tailored to special needs.”

Each researcher had to apply for the award and subsequent grant.

Arnold said the process took him more than a year-and-a-half between turning in an initial proposal to hearing who had won.

He said he felt honored.

“[This award is] recognizing not just your good ideas, but the accomplishments you’ve already had in your career,” Arnold said.

He also said he was glad his research team of both graduate and undergraduate students could be recognized for their work as well.

In years past, recipients have gotten the opportunity to meet the president at their award ceremony.

In a statement from the White House, President Barack Obama said “it is inspiring to see the innovative work being done by these scientists and engineers as they ramp up their careers – careers that I know will be not only personally rewarding but also invaluable to the Nation.”

PECASE was commissioned by President Bill Clinton and created by the National Science and Technology Council in February 1996.

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