2009 NAE Awards
The National Academy of Engineering's Greatest Honors
The National Academy of Engineering (NAE), an organization dedicated to engineering and service, recently bestowed three awards to honor achievements in technological advancement, leadership, and dedication to the engineering profession. NAE presents five awards, some on alternating years, for varying achievements, and has recently awarded its three 2009 awards.
Charles Stark Draper Prize - Robert H. Dennard Inventor of DRAM
The Charles Stark Draper Prize serves to honor an individual who, as the NAE website states, "honors an engineer whose accomplishment has significantly impacted society by improving the quality of life, providing the ability to live freely and comfortably, and/or permitting the access to information." The 2009 winner of NAE's Charles Stark Draper Prize is Dr. Robert H. Dennard for his development of dynamic random access memory, or DRAM.
DRAM is a type of memory used in computers and many other electronic devices. While working at IBM in 1972, Dr. Dennard explored the use of metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) transistors, allowing memory chips to be much smaller. The development of DRAM, resulting in small, inexpensive memory chips, arguably boosted the growth and expansion of the computing industry.
Fritz J. and Dolores H. Russ Prize - Elmer L. Gaden
The Fritz J. and Dolores H. Russ Prize recognizes "engineering achievement that has had a significant impact on society and has contributed to the advancement of the human condition through widespread use." The Russ Prize also has a secondary focus on bioengineering achievements.
The 2009 winner of the Russ Prize is Dr. Elmer L. Gaden, who taught chemical engineering at Columbia University and later at the University of Virginia. The Russ Prize was awarded to Dr. Gaden for pioneering the engineering and commercialization of biological systems for large-scale manufacturing of antibiotics and other drugs." These processes allowed drug companies to expand their manufacturing operations and allow antibiotics to be manufactured inexpensively.
Bernard M. Gordon Prize - Thomas H. Byers and Tina L. Selig
The Bernard M. Gordon Prize for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education is meant to "recognize new modalities and experiments in education that develop effective engineering leaders." The 2009 Gordon Prize was awarded to Dr. Thomas H. Byers and Dr. Tina L. Selig for their development of the Stanford Technology Ventures Program (STVP), located within the school of engineering at Stanford.
The STVP gives students the tools they need to be successful entrepreneurs through a variety of courses. The STVP also partners with venture capitalists and technology experts to provide students with the best resources and cutting edge information.
Sources
NAE website, ASME News Online
The 2009 NAE Awards
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