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46702255.Pdf sunshine. After incubation, Elizabeth, at the memorial the soil would be analyzed in service. “He was very modest Faculty File a simple pyrolytic gas chro- about his achievements and matograph for the presence of had absolute integrity in his organic compounds labeled approach to science, untainted with carbon-14. If the level of by self interest or the desire radioactive carbon exceeded for personal gain.” Son Joel a predetermined background talked about his father’s love of level, it would show that there classical music and opera, and had been organic synthesis how he played the piano every during incubation. The Viking evening and tended his roses. craft, finally launched in 1976, He also enjoyed hiking and landed at two sites, Chryse camping in the mountains. Planitia and Utopia. Although His great generosity to several samples were tested at Caltech resulted in part in the both sites, all the results were George Beadle Professorship negative, as were those for the of Biology (Meyerowitz is the other life-detection instru- second holder of that chair) ments on board. “Horowitz’s and the Norman Horowitz work was important in a lecture series. After the death negative way,” said Baltimore at of his wife in 1985, he set up the service. “He showed that the Pearl S. Horowitz book life really couldn’t exist on the fund in the biology division surface of Mars—but we’re still in her honor. According to looking beneath the surface Meyerowitz, he also left the and hoping for the best.” Institute a very valuable gift Returning to Caltech in in his will—his house in Tom Apostol and Mamikon Mnatsakanian. 1970, Horowitz started to Altadena. The proceeds of the look for mutations that would sale of the house will supple- enable Neurospora to live with ment the Horowitz lecture less water. None were found, fund, with the balance used to T HREE M ATH P APERS . but his research led to the assist graduate students in the discovery of some interesting Division of Biology. growth factors—chelating In his 1986 book, To Utopia agents called siderophores and Back: The Search for Life Who says mathematicians between them. They solved that were involved with iron in the Solar System, Horowitz do their best work before the the dilemma by awarding the uptake. Out of this work concluded: “The failure to age of 30? Eighty-two-year- prize to all three papers—a first grew the important realization find life on Mars was a disap- old Tom Apostol, professor of in the history of the Associa- that iron in our bodies has to pointment, but it was also a mathematics, emeritus, and tion. be kept very closely “locked revelation. We are alone, we director of Project MATHE- The articles, entitled “Iso- up” by proteins to stop harm- and the other species, actually MATICS!, along with 63-year- perimetric and Isoparametric ful organisms from getting at our relatives, with whom we old project assistant Mamikon Problems,” “A Fresh Look at it with their chelating agents. share the earth. If the explora- Mnatsakanian, received this the Method of Archimedes,” In 1998, the Genetic tions of the solar system in our year’s Lester R. Ford Award of and “Figures Circumscribing Society of America awarded time bring home to us a real- the Mathematical Association Circles,” give classical geometry Horowitz its highest honor, ization of the uniqueness of of America. a modern twist and modern the Thomas Hunt Morgan our small planet and thereby The award is for “an geometry a classical twist, Medal. He was a member of increase our resolve to avoid article of expository excellence” said the citation, producing the National Academy of Sci- self-destruction, they will have published in The American new and surprising results in ences and the American Acad- contributed more than just Mathematical Monthly or areas that have been mined for emy of Arts and Sciences, and science to the human future.” Mathematics Magazine, but in centuries. the holder of a NASA Public Horowitz was predeceased 2004, each of the three articles We featured some of this Service Medal. by two brothers who were also Apostol and Mamikon pub- innovative work in E&S, No. But Horowitz was not con- scientists, one a petroleum lished was a worthy candidate, 3, 2000. ■—BE cerned with gaining honors. engineer, the other a chem- and the judges couldn’t decide “My father always felt that he ist. He is survived by his had been incredibly lucky to daughter, Elizabeth; his son, have landed at the right place Joel; and two grandchildren. at the right time, which for ■—BE him was Caltech at the dawn of the era of biochemical genetics,” said his daughter, 42 ENGINEERING & SCIENCE NO . 4 2 0 0 5 . A ND A N EW D IRECTOR FOR I S T Information (CPI), the Social and Information Sciences Laboratory (SISL), the Center for Biological Circuit Design (CBCD), the Lee Center for Advanced Networking, and Michael R. Hoffmann, the the Center for Neuromorphic Irvine Professor of Environ- Systems Engineering (CNSE). mental Science, has been Murray succeeds Professor reappointed dean of graduate Jehoshua “Shuki” Bruck, the studies for a further three founding director of IST, and years. He has been dean will start full time in April since 2002, prior to which he 2006. Professor of Computer served for six years as execu- Science Leonard Schulman, tive officer for environmental the new associate director of engineering science. He was Richard Murray, profes- IST and head of CMI, will also a multi-year chair of the sor of control and dynamical manage the day-to-day activi- freshman admissions com- systems, is to be director of ties until then. mittee. ■ Caltech’s Information Science Murray, who retired as chair and Technology (IST), the of the Division of Applied Michael R. Hoffmann first initiative in the country Science and Engineering on that combines research and September 1, will lead IST teaching, from the fundamen- as it creates national visibility tal theoretical underpinnings for Caltech in Information of information to the science Science and Technology; and and engineering of novel will develop and implement information substrates, bio- a plan for graduate and under- T WO AV P S . logical circuits, and complex graduate curricula related to social systems (see E&S, No. IST and oversee the con- 1/2, 2005). struction of the Walter and Conceived as an organi- Leonore Annenberg Center zation that would support for Information Science and multiple centers, each focused Technology. on a particular aspect of Since its inception, IST information science, the cur- has received almost $50 mil- rent configuration includes lion from the Gordon and the Center for Mathematics Betty Moore Foundation, of Information (CMI), the the Annenberg Foundation, Center for the Physics of and Howard Oringer. ■ Caltech has appointed two new assistant vice presidents: Richmond Wolf, for technology transfer; and Denise Nelson Nash, for public events. 2 0 0 5 ENGINEERING & SCIENCE NO . 4 43 sor of electrical engineering Christina Smolke, assis- H ONORS AND A WARDS (Teaching Award) and Oskar tant professor of chemical Painter, assistant professor of engineering, has been named applied physics (Mentoring the recipient of a 2005 Award). Beckman Young Investigator David Anderson, Sperry selected by the National Acad- Mitchio Okumura, profes- Award. Professor of Biology and emies Keck Futures Initiative sor of chemical physics, has Brian Stoltz, assistant pro- investigator with the Howard as one the two finalists for the been elected a fellow of the fessor of chemistry, has been Hughes Medical Institute, has National Academies Commu- American Association for the selected by the American received a Humboldt Research nication Award in the book Advancement of Science. Chemical Society to receive Award from Germany’s Alex- category. John Preskill, MacArthur the 2006 Arthur C. Cope ander von Humboldt Founda- Tracey Ho, assistant profes- Professor of Theoretical Phys- Scholar Award. tion. sor of electrical engineering, ics, has been invited by Har- Keith Taylor, a member Fred Anson, Gilloon Pro- has been named one of the vard University to be a Morris of the professional staff, fessor of Chemistry, Emeritus, nation’s top 35 innovators Loeb Lecturer this spring. He Caltech Optical Observato- has received the Hans Fischer under age 35 by MIT’s Tech- will give a series of lectures on ries, has been awarded the Career Award in Porphyrin nology Review magazine. quantum information science. Royal Astronomical Society’s Chemistry from the Society Hans Hornung, Johnson Ares Rosakis, von Kármán Jackson-Gwilt medal for his of Porphyrin and Phthalocya- Professor of Aeronautics, Professor of Aeronautics and role in developing world-class nines. Emeritus, has been elected a Mechanical Engineering instrumental facilities for James Beck, professor of fellow of the American Asso- and director of the Graduate astronomers. applied mechanics and civil ciation for the Advancement Aeronautical Laboratories, has Eric Van de Velde, direc- engineering, has been awarded of Science. been selected by the Society tor of library information the Senior Research Prize in Matthew Jackson, Wasser- for Experimental Mechan- technology, has been named the area of Computational man Professor of Economics, ics to receive its 2005 W. M. a recipient of a 2005 Meri- Stochastic Mechanics by the has been named a Fellow of Murray Medal. torious Service Award by the International Association for the John Simon Guggenheim Athanassios Siapas, assis- American National Standards Structural Safety and Reli- Memorial Foundation. tant professor of computa- Institute (ANSI). ability. David MacMillan, Antho- tion and neural systems, has Alexander Varshavsky, Marc Bockrath, assistant ny Professor of Chemistry, received a McKnight Scholar Smits Professor of Cell Biol- professor of applied phys- has been named a corecipient Award to support his work in ogy, has been elected to the ics, has been selected by the of the 2004 Corday-Morgan cortico-hippocampal interac- Academia Europaea.
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