Five Cornell faculty members have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest general scientific society.

The association elected 489 new fellows in 2020, honoring their efforts to advance research and its applications in scientifically or socially distinguished ways. New fellows will be presented with an official certificate and a gold and blue (representing science and engineering, respectively) rosette pin. A virtual induction ceremony for the new fellows will be held Feb. 13, 2021.

Cornell’s 2020 AAAS fellows:

• John Abowd, the Edmund Ezra Day Professor of Economics, Statistics and Information Science, and the chief scientist and associate director for research and methodology, U.S. Census Bureau, was honored for his distinguished contribution to the statistical understanding of U.S. population dynamics, and the critical role of the census in shaping public policy and understanding.
• Susan Daniel, professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, was selected for her pioneering work that has yielded new approaches to the study of the biophysical interactions at cellular membranes, particularly involving microvesicles and viruses.
• John W. Fitzpatrick, executive director of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, was recognized for advancing the understanding of cooperative-breeding birds, for his leadership in conservation and citizen science, and for co-founding the flagship birding platform, eBird.
• Natalie Mahowald, the Irving Porter Church Professor of Engineering, was honored for her pioneering work on the role of aerosols in global biogeochemistry and climate.
• Jeremy Searle, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, was chosen for his distinguished contributions in the field of evolutionary biology and for the promotion of science through teaching, international work, media activities and science-based natural history.