Four Greek scientists have been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Sciences in the United States, following recognition of their significant contributions in their respective fields.
Columbia University Computer Science Professor, Mihalis Yannakakis, and Professor of
Physics and Astronomy, Vicky Kalogera, at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, have been elected as new members of the Academy, whilst the director of the Archaeological Sciences Laboratory at the American School of Classical Studies in Athens, Panagiotis Karkanas, and Economic Theory and Policy Professor Anastasios Xepapadeas of the Athens University of Economics and Business were elected as foreign associates.
"I feel deeply honoured, as this is a distinction beyond any expectation. I really needed some time to assimilate that it was real," said Kalogera.
With regard to the future goals of her research, Kalogera said: "We are at the dawn of gravity waves astronomy... just in the beginning ... Exploring the universe through this new window will change the way we understand how stars die, how black holes and neutron stars are born in pairs, and how they end their lives in a spiral of death. This is the primary objective of research over the next few years, as we discover more and more collisions of these dense objects."