Outstanding Young Scientist and Outstanding Young Engineer Awards
Congratulations to the 2011 Award Recipients
2011 Outstanding Young Scientist
Ian Appelbaum, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Physics and Affiliate Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Maryland Department of Physics
First Recipient of the newly endowed award named in memory of Alexander M. Haig, Jr.
Dr. Appelbaum is Associate Professor of Physics and Affiliate Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering. He earned a B.S. Summa Cum Laude in Physics and Mathematics at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in 1997, and awarded his Ph.D. in Physics at MIT in 2003. “Ian is an excellent candidate for the Prize, having accomplished remarkable scientific breakthroughs already at the beginning of his career. His research goes to the heart of technological innovation in the cutting-edge technological developments, searching for viable alternatives to conventional charge-based electronics. Ian has made the most important experimental discovery – that of electrical spin injection into silicon – that has brought the integration of the conventional silicon-based information technology and the emerging spin-based electronics (spintronics) a giant step together. This integration will result in more energy efficient, faster, and more versatile information processing devices with wide range of applications, from dense information storage and reading to reconfigurable logic circuits and, ultimately, quantum computing.” -- Professor Dr. Jaroslav Fabian, Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of Regensburg, Germany.
2011 Outstanding Young Engineer
Dr. Ganesh Sriram, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
University of Maryland
Dr. Ganesh Sriram, University of Maryland Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
Recipient of the Allan C. Davis Medal.
Dr. Sriram is Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. His work has involved the application of biology, chemical engineering, experimental design, and statistical and computational mathematical concepts to the mapping of metabolic pathways in both plants and animals. His strong interdisciplinary approach has resulted in new insights into biological processes which are of paramount importance in increasing agricultural yields for food and for biofuels. Dr. Sriram’s work has also opened new pathways for the treatment of human diseases, including diabetes.
In Mumbai, India, Dr. Sriram received a B. Tech. and an M. Tech. in Chemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology. Subsequently, he earned his Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering at Iowa State University and did postdoctoral work in Human Genetics/Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of California at Los Angeles.
Currently, Dr. Sriram serves as an editor and journal reviewer. His lab at College Park sponsors four scholars at the graduate and postdoctoral level, and he mentors high school interns, undergraduate, and graduate level students.