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Berkeley trio shortlisted for prestigious early-career Blavatnik Awards

By Public Affairs

Three UC Berkeley researchers — Christopher Chang, professor of chemistry; Ali Javey, associate professor of electrical engineering and computer sciences; and Michael Rape, associate professor of molecular and cell biology  — are among 30 national finalists for the 2014 Blavatnik National Awards for Young Scientists. Finalists were selected from a field of 300 nominees, all faculty-rank researchers aged 42 or younger from leading U.S. academic and research institutions.

three scientists

(L to R): UC Berkeley faculty members Ali Javey, Michael Rape and Christopher Chang are finalists for the 2014 Blavatnik National Awards for Young Scientists.

“The Blavatnik National Awards remind us that some of today’s most exciting research is being pursued by talented young scientists,” said Nobel Laureate Richard Roberts, a member of the 2014 Blavatnik Awards national jury. “This kind of recognition has a positive impact on their careers.”

The annual awards, established by the Blavatnik Family Foundation and administered by the New York Academy of Sciences, recognize and support the nation’s top scientific innovators in life sciences, chemistry and physical sciences and engineering. From among the finalists, three 2014 National Laureates will be announced this summer. Each will receive a cash prize of $250,000, the largest unrestricted prize of its kind for early-career scientists.

The Blavatnik Family Foundation will host a scientific symposium July 9 featuring the research of the 2014 finalists, along with honorees from previous years. This year’s laureates and finalists will be honored at a September awards ceremony at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.

To follow the progress of the Awards and find links to the finalists’ research websites, see the Blavatnik Awards website, or follow the award on Facebook and Twitter (@BlavatnikAwards).