Physics’ Leo Piilonen awarded Lifetime Fellowship by American Association for the Advancement of Science | VTx
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The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has elected Virginia Tech’s Leo Piilonen to its most recent Fellowship course, one of the most unique honors in just the scientific community.
Piilonen is a professor in the Office of Physics, section of the Virginia Tech College or university of Science. AAAS is honoring Piilonen for his “distinguished contributions to experimental elementary particle physics, notably for leadership in the Belle and Belle II collaborations and in their muon and K-lengthy meson detection and identification.”
These higher-power particle physics detectors – the original Belle and the new Belle II – are found on the campus of the Substantial Vitality Accelerator Investigation Firm (“KEK,” using its Japanese language acronym) in Tsukuba Science Metropolis, Japan. Piilonen’s staff created and created the outermost element, the KLM, of the two detectors. Belle II is designed to make specific measurements of weak interaction parameters and uncover “new physics” outside of the normal design of regarded particle physics, in accordance to the institution’s web-site. The measurements carried out in Japan aided receive a 2008 Nobel Prize in Physics. Piilonen mentioned he is thankful for the many contributions for the duration of the yrs of his local crew members, presently postdoctoral scientist Vipin Gaur, now functioning at KEK Taylor Kimmel, who graduated with a Ph.D. last yr and recent physics Ph.D. learners Zachary Stottler and Tommy Lam.
Piilonen has served as the elected co-chief of the 500-member Belle Collaboration, as effectively as the elected chair of the Belle II Collaboration’s Institutional Board, which represents the interests of its 1,000 users. In 2016, Piilonen led a nearby staff to build a digital-reality interactive product of the Belle II experiment, partly supported by the Virginia Tech Institute for Creativeness, Arts, and Engineering. The effort was developed to provide particle-physics investigate into the classroom. “This venture has been adopted by about 30 institutions all over the world for scholar schooling and general public outreach,” Piilonen wrote.
“We are delighted that Leo Piilonen has been honored with this effectively-deserved recognition as AAAS fellow for his research on experimental elementary particle physics,” stated Virginia Tech Senior Vice President for Investigate and Innovation Dan Sui. “Dr. Pillonen’s nationally and internationally renowned research has produced huge impression on the industry of physics.”
“Dr. Piilonen’s assortment as a Fellow of the American Association for the Improvement of Science recognizes his distinguished career and his a lot of contributions to science,” claimed Ron Fricker, interim dean of the College or university of Science. “As we rejoice Virginia Tech’s 150th anniversary and look back again over the university’s background, Leo’s investigate stands tall. His investigation in the discipline of particle physics, which include many years-extended get the job done with the Belle and Belle II jobs, have established new benchmarks for science with new discoveries but to arrive.”
“In his nearly four-10 years job working in the region of experimental particle physics, Leo has made substantial contributions to our comprehending of the fundamental particles of nature and how they interact, especially with his management and contributions to the Belle and Belle II experiments in Japan,” stated Mark Pitt, professor and chair of the Department of Physics.
Piilonen is also a Fellow of the American Actual physical Society. Other honors involve a 2019 Excellent School Award from the State Council of Greater Instruction for Virginia and a 2019 Alumni Award for Excellence in Investigate from Virginia Tech. He also held the William E. Hassinger, Jr. Senior Fellowship in Physics from 2010 to 2016. He joined Virginia Tech in 1987, and grew to become the very first director of the department’s Centre for Neutrino Physics in 2010. He then served as department chair from 2012 to 2015.
He attained a bachelor of science in physics from the College of Toronto in 1978 and a Ph.D., also in physics, from Princeton University in 1985. This soon after becoming lifted in a tiny Canadian village with a one-space log-cabin schoolhouse until eventually he was in junior large.
AAAS is the world’s greatest basic scientific modern society and publisher of the Science household of journals.
The 2021 class of AAAS Fellows involves 564 scientists, engineers, and innovators spanning 24 scientific disciplines who are staying recognized for their scientifically and socially distinguished achievements. Also honored this calendar year is Virginia Tech’s X.J. Meng, a College Distinguished Professor at the Virginia-Maryland Higher education of Veterinary Medication and professor of inner medication at Virginia Tech Carilion School of Drugs.
AAAS was launched in 1848 and incorporates a lot more than 250 affiliated societies and academies of science, serving 10 million folks. The nonprofit AAAS is open to all and fulfills its mission to “advance science and serve society” by means of initiatives in science policy, intercontinental courses, science schooling, general public engagement, and far more. The tradition of honoring AAAS Fellows began in 1874.
In accordance to AAAS, this year’s Fellows will get an official certification and a gold and blue rosette pin to commemorate their election, symbolizing science and engineering, respectively. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, alternatively than in February, the Fellows will be celebrated at a later on day for an in-individual celebration when it is publicly risk-free to do so.
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