The 2019 DOE Office of Science Distinguished Scientists Fellows Awards recognized some of the most outstanding researchers supported by DOE.
December 2, 2019
minute read time
The Big Questions series features perspectives from the five recipients of the Department of Energy Office of Science’s 2019 Distinguished Scientists Fellows Award describing their research and what they plan to do with the award. This is an introduction to the series by the Director of the Office of Science, Chris Fall.
Big science requires big commitments. Thankfully, we here at the Department of Energy’s Office of Science are all about the big ideas that push discovery forward.
That’s why I was so pleased recently to recognize five researchers as our first group of DOE Office of Science Distinguished Scientists Fellows: Sally Dawson of Brookhaven National Laboratory, Ian Foster of Argonne National Laboratory, Joshua Frieman of Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, Barbara Jacak of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and José Rodriguez of Brookhaven National Laboratory. Established by the America COMPETES Act, the program acknowledges the work of some of our most eminent scientists.
Each one of our 10 national laboratories nominated no more than two of their best, brightest, and experienced scientists. They especially emphasized researchers who collaborate heavily with scientists at institutions of higher education. Our expert program staff members then sorted through the entries to pick just five. They judged them on their discoveries as well as their willingness to mentor younger scientists. Knowing the quality of talent we have out there, it must have been a very hard selection!
All five scientists have done research fundamental to advances in their field, from discovering the Higgs Boson to cracking the chemistry behind more efficient catalysts. They represent the spectrum of research the Office of Science supports. Their research answers the biggest questions of our universe while creating the foundation for future technology and applied science.
In addition to recognizing their past work, the award provides financial support to help them pursue upcoming endeavors. We know that long-term, sustained funding is essential to innovation. All of these scientists have only been able to do their work because the Office of Science supports them and their laboratories. With each scientist receiving one million dollars over three years, they’ll be able to pursue this work even further. Although each researcher will use this funding differently, all of them plan to bring more graduate students and post-docs into their laboratories. In this way, the award helps create the structure that develops the Distinguished Scientists Fellows of the future.
Here at the DOE’s Office of Science, we love to talk about the research we support. We’re thrilled to introduce you to our Distinguished Scientists Fellows and share their stories.
The Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit the Office of Science website.
Dr. Chris Fall
Dr. Chris Fall served as Director of the Department of Energy's Office of Science, the lead federal agency supporting fundamental scientific research for energy and the nation's largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences. He oversaw the Office's two principal thrusts: direct support of scientific research, and development, construction, and operation of unique, open-access scientific user facilities that are made available to external researchers. The Office of Science also is responsible for stewardship of 10 of the Department's 17 national laboratories.
Before joining the Office of Science, Fall served as a Senior Advisor to the Undersecretary for Energy and as Acting Director of DOE's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). Fall came to DOE from the Office of Naval Research (ONR), where he served for more than seven years in a variety of roles including Acting Chief Scientist and Lead for the Research Directorate, Deputy Director of Research, Director of the International Liaison Office, and the ONR Innovation Fellow. While on loan from ONR, Fall served for three years in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy as Assistant Director for Defense Programs and then as Acting Lead for the National Security and International Affairs Division. Before government service, Fall was a faculty member at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and he completed postdoctoral fellowships at the University of California at Davis Institute for Theoretical Dynamics and the New York University Center for Neural Science.
Fall earned a Ph.D. in Neuroscience and a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Virginia. He also holds an MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management.