Archives of the Mayor's Press Office
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: February 24, 1998
Release #082-98
Contact: Colleen Roche 212-788-2958 or Jennifer Chait (212) 788-8479
MAYOR GIULIANI HONORS FOUR NEW YORKERS FOR EXCELLENCE IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani today presented four outstanding New Yorkers with the Mayor's Awards for Excellence in Science and Technology during a ceremony at Gracie Mansion. The annual event honors the most outstanding scientists and engineers who live or work in New York City and celebrates their exceptional contributions to both fields of study.
This year's winners include biological researchers Gunter Blobel and Richard Axel and include mathematician Dennis Sullivan and new media pioneer Red Burns. Joining the Mayor at tonight's event were Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner Schuyler G. Chapin; New York Academy of Sciences President and CEO Rodney W. Nichols, and the Academy's Board of Governors Chair Richard Rifkind.
"New York City has always been known as the Capital of the World for economics, entertainment, sports and theatre." Mayor Giuliani said. "But today, we can see that science and technology, two more reasons New York City is the world's premier city. It is fitting that tonight's honorees, who represent some of the most brilliant minds in the fields of science and technology, call New York City home. I am proud to honor their many outstanding contributions that have brought distinction upon themselves and their City.
"The scientists and experts in technology we honor this evening have made, and continue to make, invaluable contributions to our economy, our colleges and universities, our corporate, not-for-profit, and government laboratories. The scientific and technological research and applications discovered and perfected in New York City are among the city's greatest exports. I would like to thank Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner Schuyler Chapin and The New York Academy of Sciences, now enjoying its 181st anniversary, for their work on these awards."
This year's recipients are:
- Gunter Blobel, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Professor of Cell Biology at the Rockefeller University is one of the world's premier cell biologists of his generation. He revolutionized this field in 1975 with his discovery of how protein molecules are sorted within cells into distinct compartments, and by reproducing this phenomenon in a cell-free environment. Dr. Blobel has won the prestigious Lasker, Gairdner, and Horwitz Prizes. A New Yorker for over 25 years, he is the author of over 225 research publications, an Investigator in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and a member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS).
- Richard Axel, Higgins Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics at Columbia University and a past finalist for this award, is a world-class pioneer in molecular biology of gene expression, immunology, and neurobiology. Dr. Axel characterized the molecular regulation of globin gene expression. As part of those studies, he and his colleagues described co-transformation of DNA, a method that allows transfer of genes into mammalian cells, a technique central to modern research and biotechnology. Born in New York City , Dr. Axel has been awarded the Passano Foundation Young Scientist Award and the Alan T. Waterman Award from the National Science Foundation, among other distinctions.
- Dennis Sullivan, Einstein Professor of Science and Distinguished Professor of Mathematics at Queens College and the City University of New York Graduate School -- for his work in Mathematical, Physical, and Engineering Sciences. Dr. Sullivan has left an indelible mark on mathematics over the second half of the century with seminal contributions in topology and geometry, including homotopy theory, topological invariants of manifolds, dynamical systems, ergodic theory, Kleinian groups, and most recently, fluid dynamics. Dr. Sullivan's work has important applications to the physical sciences. He is one of a few Americans to hold a permanent appointment at the prestigious Institut des Hautes Etudes Scientifiques in Paris and he has won numerous awards and honors from NAS, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the New York Academy of Sciences.
- Red Burns, Chair and Professor in the Interactive Telecommunications Program at the Tisch Institute of the Arts at New York University -- for being a pioneer in the field of new media since co-founding of the Alternate Media Center at NYU in 1971. Ms. Burns developed two-way television for senior citizens and telecommunication applications for the developmentally disabled including one of the first Teletext trials in the U.S. in the 1970's. Involved in dozens of new media projects, she has received many awards and honors including being named one in each of the following rankings: Newsweek's "50 for the Future"; "100 Leaders in the New York Economy" by Crains; "Top 25 Most Influential People on the Net", by Interactive Week; and the "New York Cyber 60", by New York Magazine.
The Awards' nomination, evaluation and review processes were administered by the New York Academy of Sciences in close partnership with the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and Planning and the Cultural Affairs Commissioner. This year's reception was underwritten by Rudin Management.
The New York Academy of Sciences is an independent, not-for-profit organization founded in 1817, that is committed to advancing science, technology and society worldwide. For more information, please contact their Internet website at http://www.nyas.org.
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