Personal Mention

Fred Gilman and Kathryn Roeder have been selected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). AAAS is the world's largest general scientific society and publisher of several highly regarded journals, including "Science." Fellows are elected by their peers to honor their scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications.

Gilman, the Buhl Professor of Theoretical Physics and dean of the Mellon College of Science from 2007-2016, was recognized for his work elucidating the fundamental nature of CP violation and his sustained and successful leadership in the particle physics and cosmology communities. Gilman has a record of national and international professional service and leadership. Most recently, he served for six years as chair of the committee overseeing the construction of the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope. From 1999 to 2005, he chaired the High Energy Physics Advisory Panel, which advises the National Science Foundation and the Department of Energy (DOE) on setting the nation's priorities for particle physics. For over a decade he was one of three senior advisers designated by the DOE under the U.S.-China Agreement on Cooperation in High Energy Physics. This led to new Chinese facilities and increased collaboration in particle physics experiments in both China and the United States.
Roeder, the UPMC Professor of Statistics and Life Sciences, is being recognized for her distinguished contributions to statistical genetics and genomics methodology, her outstanding research in genetics of autism spectrum disorder and her contribution to statistical theory for mixture models. Roeder started her research career in biology but was soon drawn to statistics. Her first major data project was in DNA forensics, helping to solidify the credibility of this form of evidence in the judicial system. As her scientific career advanced, Roeder transitioned to developing statistical and machine learning tools for finding associations or patterns in data. She focuses on high dimensional inference problems with applications such as analyzing variation in the whole human genome and how it relates to disease. Her work has contributed to a better understanding of schizophrenia, autism and other genetic disorders. Roeder has published more than 150 scholarly articles and was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2019.

Gilman and Roeder are among 33 AAAS Fellows who have called CMU home. They will be inducted on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2020, during the AAAS annual meeting in Seattle. Learn more about Gilman and Roeder.

Kiron Skinner recently co-authored an op-ed published in the Jerusalem Post calling for Jews and African-Americans to once again join forces to fight bigotry and persecution. In the Nov. 20 piece, “Time to rekindle the tradition of mutual support,” Skinner writes about the need for a resurgence of the 1950s “golden age of black-Jewish relations, during which time Jews and African-Americans fought side by side for civil rights.” Skinner notes that Jews made up almost half of those who led the 1964 Mississippi Freedom Summer, when hundreds of activists organized to register black voters, and three – two Jews and one African-American – were murdered by local police connected to the KKK. “It’s time for Jews and African-Americans to renew our proud tradition of mutual support that sustained our peoples through some of history’s greatest challenges,” she writes. “By joining forces, championing each other, and leveraging our combined power to speak and stand up for what’s right, we will ensure that future generations enjoy a world free of bigotry and persecution.” Skinner is director and the Taube Professor in the Institute for Politics and Strategy. Read the op-ed.