Five Duke Faculty Members Elected to Prestigious National Academy of Sciences

Recently, five Duke faculty members were honored with election to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) for their outstanding research contributions. Among the 120 new members and 24 new international members elected, these Duke faculty members stood out for their distinguished work in various fields.

John Aldrich, a professor in the Department of Political Science at Duke, was one of the NAS members from Duke. He is renowned for his research on American politics and elections. Aldrich holds the Pfizer Inc./Edmund T. Pratt Jr. University Distinguished Professor title.

Another distinguished academic from Duke who was elected to the NAS is David Beratan. He is a professor of chemistry, biochemistry, and physics at Duke, with a focus on developing theoretical approaches to understand the function of complex molecular and macromolecular systems. Beratan holds the R.J. Reynolds Professor title.

Richard Mooney, a professor of neurobiology and cell biology at Duke, was also recognized by the NAS for his work studying songbirds to uncover how experience influences learning, behavior, and perception at the neural level. Mooney holds the George Barth Geller Distinguished Professor for Research in Neurobiology title.

Tai-ping Sun, a professor of biology at Duke University, was recognized for her work using the model plant Arabidopsis to investigate plant growth and development regulation. She has made significant contributions to our understanding of how plants regulate their growth processes in response to environmental cues such as light and temperature changes.

Jenny Tung, an evolutionary anthropologist affiliated with both Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology and Duke University’s Department of Evolutionary Anthropology and Biology was also elected to NAS membership. Tung’s research project involves studying social determinants of health using baboons in Kenya and she was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2019 – this recognition underscores her dedication towards advancing scientific knowledge while making meaningful impacts on society.

The National Academy of Sciences is a private nonprofit institution that provides science