Two faculty elected to the National Academy of Sciences

Northwestern University’s Alice H. Eagly and Dean Julio M. Ottino have been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Sciences. Membership in the academy is one of the highest honors given to a scientist in the United States.

Eagly and Ottino are among 120 new members and 30 international members selected in recognition of their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. They will be formally inducted during the academy’s 159th annual meeting next year.

Alice H. Eagly

Alice Eagly

Eagly is the James Padilla Chair of Arts and Sciences Emerita and emerita professor of psychology in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences. She also is a fellow in the Institute for Policy Research.

A social psychologist, Eagly has published widely on the psychology of gender and attitudes. Her research interests include attitude change and structure, women and leadership, the content of stereotypes, feminism and psychology, science and advocacy, and the psychological differences between women and men. She is the author of numerous articles and books, including “Sex Differences in Social Behavior: A Social Role Interpretation,” “The Psychology of Attitudes” with co-author Shelly Chaiken and “Through the Labyrinth: The Truth About How Women Become Leaders” with co-author Linda L. Carli.

Throughout her career, Eagly has received many awards, including the Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award from the American Psychological Association, the Gold Medal for Life Achievement in the Science of Social Psychology from the American Psychological Foundation, the Raymond A. Katzell Award from the Society for Industrial and Organization Psychology and the 2011 Berlin Prize from the American Academy in Berlin. She also is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Julio M. Ottino

Julio M. Ottino

Ottino is the dean of the McCormick School of Engineering, Distinguished Robert R. McCormick Institute Professor and Walter P. Murphy Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering. He also is founder and former director of the Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO).

An expert on nonlinear dynamics and complex systems, Ottino’s theoretical and experimental work unveiled the connection between chaos and mixing and pattern formation in granular matter. His interests extend to creativity and innovation and the intersections of art, technology and science. A book covering this domain, titled “The Nexus,” will be published by MIT Press later this month.

As a dean, Ottino founded University-wide initiatives in design, entrepreneurship, energy and sustainability and programs connecting multiple schools. He led the development of Whole-Brain Engineering, McCormick’s guiding strategy. For this innovative work, Ottino received the 2017 Bernard M. Gordon Prize for Innovation in Engineering and Technology Education from the National Academy of Engineering. He had received a Guggenheim Fellowship as well as multiple awards from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and the American Physical Society. Ottino also is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and American Academy of Arts and Sciences.