Title
Proclamation honoring Dr. Jonathan Pruitt, a behavioral ecologist at the University of Pittsburgh and Dr. Kathryn Whitehead, assistant professor of chemical engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, for being recognized as two of the “Brilliant 10” for 2015 by Popular Science.
Body
WHEREAS, every year, Popular Science Magazine honors the 10 brightest young minds in science, engineering or mathematics in the United States, and for 2015, two of the “Brilliant 10” hail from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, including Dr. Jonathan N. Pruitt, a behavioral ecologist at the University of Pittsburgh, and Dr. Kathryn Whitehead, assistant professor of chemical engineering at Carnegie Mellon University; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Pruitt was recognized for his research of the social lives of colony-building spiders. His findings provide the first evidence that individuals in the wild sometimes sacrifice their own genetic survival for the sake of the group. Evolutionary models suggested that such group selection must be occurring, but Dr. Pruitt is the first scientist to find solid proof that group selection matters. His research has implications far beyond a single species and will improve our understanding of how societies work; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Pruitt earned his doctorate degree in ecology and evolutionary biology with a focus on animal behavior from the University of Tennessee and was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California. He joined the University of Pittsburgh as an assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences in 2011; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Whitehead was recognized for designing nanoparticles that treat disease by delivering therapeutic drugs to specific areas in the body. She tested nearly 5,000 nanoparticles and developed a model to identify the best targeted nanoparticles. Her research has the potential of revolutionizing how doctors treat such diseases as cancer, diabetes and hereditary disorders. Her team is now using nanoparticles to engineer ...
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