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Terence Tao Elected to National Academy of Sciences

May 1, 2008

The National Academy of Sciences announced on April 29 the election of 72 new members and 18 foreign associates from nine countries. Terence Tao, a Chinese-Australian mathematician from the University of California, Los Angeles, was elected as a foreign associate.

A child prodigy, Tao has demonstrated extraordinary mathematical abilities. He was promoted to a full professor at the age of 24. In August 2006, he was awarded the Fields Medal, which is often described as the "Nobel Prize of Mathematics."

The National Academy of Sciences announced latest elections during its 145th annual meeting. It brings the number of active members to 2,041. The number of foreign associates, who are nonvoting members of the Academy, stands at 397.

The National Academy of Sciences was established during Lincoln's presidency, in 1863, by a congressional act of incorporation that calls on the Academy to act as an official adviser to the federal government in matters of science and technology.

Source: Xinhua News Agency

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315
Start Date: 
Thursday, May 1, 2008