NYU’s Antón, Calhoun, and Stein Named Fellows of the AAAS

By James Devitt

      The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has awarded NYU’s Susan Antón, an anthropologist, Craig Calhoun, a sociologist, and Daniel Stein, a physicist, the distinction of Fellow. Election as a Fellow is an honor bestowed upon AAAS members by their peers.
      Antón was selected for her “distinguished contributions to the field of human evolution, and particularly to the understanding of the genus Homo,” the association announced in December. Calhoun was cited for “distinguished research in social theory and international and humanitarian applications.” Stein was chosen for his pioneering work toward understanding how randomness and disorder influence the organization of matter in a range of materials, including glasses and biological matter such as proteins. AAAS also recognized Stein, NYU’s dean of science, for his “distinguished contributions to science through university and organizational leadership.”
      Antón is an associate professor in NYU’s Center for the Study of Human Origins, which is part of the University’s Department of Anthropology. Her field research concerns the evolution of genus Homo in Indonesia. Antón, who directs NYU’s masters program in human skeletal biology, is particularly focused on the relationship between morphological and ecological variables and the early dispersal of the genus Homo as well as its potential ecological impacts on ecosystems in Asia.
      Calhoun, president of the Social Science Research Council since 1999, is University Professor of the Social Sciences at NYU. Calhoun’s empirical research has ranged from Britain and France to China and three different African countries. His study of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 resulted in the prize-winning book, Neither Gods Nor Emperors: Students and the Struggle for Democracy in China (California, 1994). His most recent books include Nations Matter: Culture, History, and the Cosmopolitan Dream (Routledge, 2007) and Cosmopolitanism and Belonging (Routledge, forthcoming 2009).
      Stein is a professor in NYU’s Department of Physics and at its Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences. He is considered a leader in theoretical condensed matter physics, which centers on building models of physical processes and transferring these models into other areas of research. Stein’s scholarship has contributed to topics as diverse as protein biophysics, biological evolution, amorphous semiconductors, superconductors and superfluids, liquid crystals, neutron stars, and the interface between particle physics and cosmology.
      This year, 486 members have been awarded this honor by AAAS because of their scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications. New Fellows were recognized on Feb. 14 at the AAAS Fellows Forum during the association’s 2009 annual meeting in Chicago.