National Medal of Science

History

The National Medal of Science was established on August 25, 1959, by an act of the United States Congress under Public Law 86-209. The medal was originally to honor scientists in the fields of the "physical, biological, mathematical, or engineering sciences." The Committee on the National Medal of Science was established on August 23, 1961 by U.S. President John F. Kennedy through executive order 10961.[1] This committee is administered by the National Science Foundation.

On January 7, 1979, the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) passed a resolution proposing that the medal be expanded to include the social and behavioral sciences.[1] In response, Senator Ted Kennedy introduced the Science and Technology Equal Opportunities Act into the Senate on March 7,1979, expanding the medal to include these scientific disciplines as well. President Jimmy Carter's signature enacted this change as Public Law 96-516 on December 12,1980.

In 1992, the National Science Foundation signed a letter of agreement with the National Science and Technology Medals Foundation that made the National Science and Technology Medals Foundation the metaorganization over both the National Medal of Science and the very similar National Medal of Technology.

The first National Medal of Science was awarded on February 18, 1963, for the year 1962 by President John F. Kennedy to Theodore von Kármán for his work at the Caltech Jet Propulsion Laboratory. The citation accompanying von Kármán's award reads:

For his leadership in the science and engineering basic to aeronautics; for his effective teaching and related contributions in many fields of mechanics, for his distinguished counsel to the Armed Services, and for his promoting international cooperation in science and engineering.[1]

Award Process

Each year the National Science Foundation sends out a call to the scientific community for the nomination of new candidates for the National Medal of Science. Individuals are nominated by their peers with each nomination requiring three letters of support from individuals in science and technology. These nominations are then sent to the Committee of the National Medal of Science which is a board composed of 12 scientists appointed by the President.

According to the Committee, successful candidates must be U.S. citizens (or permanent residents who are applying for U.S. citizenship) that have done work of significantly outstanding merit or that has had a major impact on scientific thought in their field. The Committee also values those who promote the general advancement of science and individuals who have influenced science education, although these traits are less important than groundbreaking or thought-provoking research. The nomination of a candidate is effective for three years; at the end of three years, the candidates peers are allowed to renominate the candidate. The Committee makes their recommendations to the President for the final awarding decision.

Laureates

As of November 6, 2003, when U.S. President George W. Bush announced the 2002 National Medal of Science laureates, there have been 409 individuals recognized. Summarized here is a list of the most eminent laureates and their citation in the NSF database of National Medal of Science laureates. There is also a full list of all National Medal of Science laureates available.

Note: *The National Science Foundation reports that the actual citation for Werhner von Braun is not available. This citation is the one proposed by the NSF and entered at von Braun's entry at the NSF National Medal of Science laureate database.

See Also