Three Rutgers Professors Named Fellows of Top National Science Association

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. – Three Rutgers professors are among 539 scholars that the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has elevated to the rank of fellow. The pre-eminent national scientific organization selects fellows based on their efforts in advancing science or fostering applications considered scientifically or socially distinguished.

Joining 49 previous Rutgers fellows, the new inductees will receive an official certificate and a gold and blue rosette pin Saturday, Feb. 18, at the AAAS Fellows Forum during the 2012 AAAS Annual Meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

The new Rutgers AAAS fellows are:

Anthony Broccoli, Department of Environmental Sciences, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. Broccoli's research focuses on climate modeling, with emphasis on the simulation of past climates and climate change, and the use of such simulations to evaluate the reliability of climate models. His work includes simulation of the climate of the past century, climate variations during the last glacial cycle, extratropical forcing of tropical climate change and diagnosis of climate model feedbacks and sensitivity. Broccoli is a fellow of the American Meterological Society and received Rutgers’ Cook College Research Excellence Award in 2006.

The association cited Broccoli “for distinguished contributions to the understanding and modeling of past climate change, and to communicating climate science.”

Bingru Huang, Department of Plant Biology and Pathology, School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. Huang’s research focuses on understanding turfgrass tolerance to environmental stresses, especially heat and drought. She holds the Ralph Geiger Endowed Chair in Turfgrass Science and is a member of the university’s Center for Turfgrass Science, a nationally recognized research, teaching and service organization. She has established partnerships with institutions in several countries, including Australia, Israel, Norway and her native China, enhancing turfgrass breeding and management for those countries’ environments and expanding educational opportunities for their students.

The association cited Huang “for distinguished contributions to crop science, particularly for invaluable discoveries in turfgrass physiology and novel methods for improving turfgrass germplasms and management practices.”

Patrick Sinko, Department of Pharmaceutics, Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, and Associate Vice President for Research, Rutgers University. Sinko’s research focuses on the mechanisms and applications of biopharmaceutics and polymers to drug delivery and targeting. He also oversees research on the design, fabrication and evaluation of molecular-scale drug and diagnostic delivery technologies applied broadly to asthma, AIDS, cancer, and chemical counterterrorism. He holds the Parke-Davis Endowed Chair in Pharmaceutics and Drug Delivery and is a fellow in the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists. He received the Rutgers University Board of Trustees Award for Excellence in Research in 2010.

The association cited Sinko “for distinguished contributions to biopharmaceutics and innovative approaches for drug delivery and targeting as well as academic leadership at Rutgers University.”

About the AAAS

Founded in 1848, the AAAS is the world’s largest general scientific society and works to advance science for human well-being through its projects, programs and publications. The tradition of selecting AAAS fellows began in 1874.