Five MIT engineers named to National Academy of Engineering

Five MIT researchers — Mary Boyce, William Delaney, Elazer Edelman, Mujid Kazimi and K. Dane Wittrup — are among the 66 new members and 10 foreign associates elected to the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) on Feb. 9. MIT President Emeritus Charles M. Vest, NAE president since 2007, announced the new members today.

Election to the National Academy of Engineering is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to an engineer. Academy membership honors those who have made outstanding contributions to “engineering research, practice or education, including, where appropriate, significant contributions to the engineering literature.”

• Mary C. Boyce SM ‘84, PhD ‘87, Ford Professor of Mechanical Engineering and head of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, was cited for contributions to understanding the mechanics of deformation in engineered and natural polymeric solids;
• William P. Delaney SM ’59, Director’s Office Fellow at Lincoln Laboratory, was recognized for contributions to radar systems for national defense;
• Elazer R. Edelman HST ‘78, SM ‘79, PhD ‘84, Thomas D. and Virginia W. Cabot Professor of Health Sciences and Technology, was elected for contributions to the design, development and regulation of local cardiovascular drug-delivery and drug-eluting stents;
• Mujid S. Kazimi SM ‘71, PhD ‘73, Tokyo Electric Power Company Professor of Nuclear Engineering, professor of mechanical engineering, and director of the Center for Advanced Nuclear Energy Systems, was cited for contributions to technologies for the nuclear fuel cycle and reactor safety;
• K. Dane Wittrup, Carbon P. Dubbs Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering and associate director of the David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, was recognized for developments in protein engineering, protein expression and quantitative pharmacology.

“I am delighted to see the exceptional contributions that Mary, William, Elazer, Mujid and Dane have made acknowledged by the National Academy of Engineering,” says Ian Waitz, dean of the School of Engineering. “They are leaders in their fields, and fantastic members of MIT’s community.”

Including the newest electees, 172 members of MIT’s engineering community have been elected to the NAE. With this week’s announcement, NAE’s total U.S. membership expands to 2,254 and the number of foreign associates to 206.  

A number of MIT alumni were also named to the NAE, including Jared L. Cohon SM ’72, PhD ’73; Louis Anthony (Tony) Cox Jr. SM ’85, PhD ’86; Peter C. Farrell SM ’67; Henrique S. Malvar PhD ’86; Tobin J. Marks PhD ’71; Diane M. McKnight ’75, SM ’78, PhD ’79; and Richard K. Miller SM ’72.