Dartmouth Professors Named to Prestigious Science Society

Four Dartmouth professors have been named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest general scientific society and the publisher of the journal Science. In its announcement, AAAS writes, “These individuals have been elevated to this rank because of their efforts toward advancing science applications that are deemed scientifically or socially distinguished.”

Dartmouth’s new AAAS fellows are Nathaniel Dominy, a professor of anthropology and biological sciences; Eugene Santos Jr., a professor of engineering at Thayer School of Engineering; Surachai Supattapone, a professor of biochemistry and cell biology at the Geisel School of Medicine; and Ross Virginia, the Myers Family Professor of Environmental Science.

“The recognition accorded our faculty by one of the world’s preeminent scientific organizations reflects their achievements as scholars, researchers, and teachers,” says President Phil Hanlon ’77. “Their accomplishments have inspired students, advanced knowledge in their fields, and brought accolades to Dartmouth.”

“I am delighted that AAAS has honored these four distinguished faculty members for their groundbreaking research and contributions to the scholarly knowledge in their fields,” says Provost Carolyn Dever.

The new fellows will be presented with an official certificate and a gold and blue (representing science and engineering, respectively) rosette pin on Saturday, Feb. 18, at the AAAS Fellows Forum during the 2017 AAAS annual meeting in Boston.

Eugene Santos Jr.

Professor Gene Santos

Santos was cited by AAAS “for distinguished contributions to the field of information and decision sciences, particularly for computational modeling of decision-making under uncertainty with application to human behavior modeling.”

He joined the faculty of Thayer School of Engineering as a professor of engineering in 2005 and teaches courses in computer engineering, operations research, and artificial intelligence.

“I am honored and delighted to have been elected a Fellow of the AAAS,” he says.

Santos works at the intersection of information, cognition, human factors, and mathematics. His focus is on determining the intent behind human decisions and behaviors with an emphasis on how machines can learn complex behaviors such as innovation and creativity.