Rice University’s Naomi Halas has been elected to the Council of the National Academy of Sciences, the academy’s governing body. The council plays a central role in setting the organization’s scientific priorities and guiding its work at the national level. Halas will serve a three-year term beginning July 1, joining a small group of elected members from across the U.S. scientific community.
“The council’s work is focused on the academy’s national leadership and governance,” said Halas, who is a University Professor at Rice, the institution’s highest academic rank. “It plays an important role in helping set initiatives and priorities for the scientific community, and in supporting the conditions that allow science to move forward in meaningful ways.”
Halas is internationally recognized for her work in nanophotonics and plasmonics, including the development of nanoshells ⎯ metal-coated nanoparticles that enable precise control of light at the nanoscale ⎯ with applications across medicine, chemistry and energy. In addition to NAS, she is a member of numerous professional honor societies, including the National Academy of Engineering, the National Academy of Inventors, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Royal Danish Academy of Science and Letters.