Oran Elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences

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Elaine Oran, Glenn L. Martin Institute professor of engineering at the A. James Clark School of Engineering, is one of two University of Maryland (UMD) faculty members elected to the 2018 class of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the nation’s oldest and most reputable honorary societies. Oran and David C. Driskell, UMD Distinguished University Professor emeritus, are among 213 new members of the academy being recognized for their accomplishments as scholars, scientists, writers, artists, and civic and philanthropic leaders.

Oran is widely recognized for her contributions to the advancement of science and engineering. She pioneered computational technology for the solution of complex reactive flow problems, unifying concepts from science, mathematics, engineering, and computer science in a new methodology. Oran has received many awards and honors, including the Fluid Dynamics Prize of the American Physical Society, the Zeldovich Gold Medal of the Combustion Institute, and the Society of Women Engineers Achievement Award. In addition, Oran is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, which is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to an engineer. She has published extensively in journals, and her research has garnered significant media coverage.

Oran and Driskell join other distinguished notables in the 2018 class, including Supreme Court Justice Sonia M. Sotomayor, 44th President of the United States Barack H. Obama, author Ta-Nehisi Coates, philanthropist and entrepreneur Laurene Powell Jobs, and actor Tom Hanks. Driskell and Oran’s election into the academy brings the total number of UMD faculty who are members of the academy to 56.

“Membership in the academy is not only an honor, but also an opportunity and a responsibility,” said Jonathan Fanton, president of the American Academy. “Members can be inspired and engaged by connecting with one another and through academy projects dedicated to the common good. The intellect, creativity, and commitment of the 2018 class will enrich the work of the academy and the world in which we live.”

Founded in 1780, the academy honors exceptional scholars, leaders, artists, and innovators and engages them in sharing knowledge and addressing challenges facing the world. The new class will be inducted at a ceremony in October 2018 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and join the Academy members who came before them, including Benjamin Franklin (elected 1781) and Alexander Hamilton (1791) in the eighteenth century; Ralph Waldo Emerson (1864), Maria Mitchell (1848), and Charles Darwin (1874) in the nineteenth; and Albert Einstein (1924), Robert Frost (1931), Margaret Mead (1948), Milton Friedman (1959), and Martin Luther King, Jr. (1966) in the twentieth.

The full list of the newly elected members is available at www.amacad.org/members.

Published April 18, 2018