NewsMakers

Knowles to Receive Prize from the American Chemical Society

Jeremy R. Knowles, Amory Houghton Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, has been chosen by the American Chemical Society as the 1999 recipient of the Nakanishi Prize. Knowles' research has included bioorganic chemistry and he has used chemical methods and approaches to solve biochemical problems. He has studied evolution at the molecular level, for example, investigating how single structural mutations incrementally improve catalytic function.

The Nakanishi Prize recognizes outstanding scientific achievement in the application of chemical and spectroscopic methods to the study of important biological phenomena. The prize will be presented in California in March 1999 at the annual meeting of the American Chemical Society.

Meadow Named an Officer of the National Order of Merit

Richard Meadow, senior lecturer in the Department of Anthropology and director of the Peabody Museum's Zooarchaeology Laboratory, was named Chevalier of the National Order of Merit by French President Jacques Chirac on May 6.

Awarded by the French government, this distinction honors Meadow as a leading expert in zooarchaeology who, for almost 20 years, has been carrying out a collaboration with the archaeological mission of the Musée Guimet in Boluchistan. It is also to reward Meadow's role in the United States where he has contributed greatly to making French research efforts known.

Retsinas Receives Excellence In Public Service Award

Nicolas P. Retsinas, director of the Joint Center for Housing Studies, has received the 1998 Excellence in Public Service Award. Sponsored by the Greater Boston Real Estate Board's Rental Housing Association, the award is given annually to an individual who best exemplifies excellence in public service benefiting the rental housing community. Retsinas was cited for having "demonstrated excellence, responsible leadership, and service to the task of improving the quality of assisted housing."

Professors Chosen as Recipients of the Roslyn Abramson Award

Andrew Metrick, assistant professor of economics, and Louise M. Richardson, associate professor of government, were chosen as this year's recipients of the Roslyn Abramson Award. The $5,000 award is "to be awarded annually to a faculty member in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences in recognition of his or her excellence and sensitivity in teaching undergraduates." The award "may be used to support research assistance or leaves, or to support course development during term time or during the summer."