The National Academy of Engineering has announced the election of 74 new members and 11 foreign associates -- including 10 University of California faculty, the most of any college or university.

With the 2005 election, 153 UC faculty and researchers at the three national laboratories managed by UC are members of the academy, which advises the federal government on issues related to engineering that have considerable economic or social implications.

Election to the National Academy of Engineering, one of the highest honors awarded to an engineer, is based on significant contributions, discoveries, or advancement in engineering research, practice or education. In 2004, six UC faculty were elected to the academy.

These engineers are to be applauded for their remarkable contributions to our nation in many areas of engineering, said UC President Robert C. Dynes. Their election confirms once again the strength of our faculty in mathematics, science and engineering.

I hope this new round of honors will encourage even more students to choose UC and to choose a career in these vital disciplines. Together, our strong faculty and motivated students continue to drive the innovation that strengthens California's and America's standing in the sciences, boosts our economy and improves our national security.

Five of the new academy members are faculty at UC Berkeley, two at UC Santa Barbara, and one each at UC Davis, UCLA and UC San Diego.

The new UC members are:

- Harvey W. Blanch, professor of chemical engineering, UC Berkeley, for scientific, engineering and educational advances in enzyme engineering, bioseparations and biothermodynamics.

- John Edward Bowers, professor of electrical and computer engineering, UC Santa Barbara, for contributions to the development of high-speed semiconductor lasers and other optical devices for optical switching and communications systems.

- William J. Chancellor, professor, department of biological and agricultural engineering, UC Davis, for contributions to the understanding of, and engineering innovations for, agricultural technology in the United States and developing countries.

- David E. Culler, professor, computer science division, UC Berkeley, for contributions to scalable parallel processing systems, including architectures, operating systems and programming environments.

- Roger T. Howe, professor, department of electrical engineering and computer science, UC Berkeley, for contributions to the development of microelectromechanical systems in processes, devices, and systems.

- Arunava Majumdar, Almy and Agnes Maynard Professor of Mechanical Engineering, UC Berkeley, for contributions to nanoscale thermal engineering and molecular nanomechanics.

- Robert M. McMeeking, professor of mechanical and environmental engineering, UC Santa Barbara, for contributions to the computational modeling of materials and for the development of codes widely used by industry.

- Geert W. Schmid-Schoenbein, professor of bioengineering, UC San Diego, for improvements to our understanding of how white blood cells are activated and the effects on medicine and pharmacology.

- Jason L. Speyer, professor, mechanical and aerospace engineering department, UCLA, for the development and application of advanced techniques for optimal navigation and control of a wide range of aerospace vehicles.

The new UC foreign associate is:

- William M. Kahan, professor, computer science division, UC Berkeley, for the development of techniques for reliable floating point computation, especially the IEEE Floating Point Standards.

Founded in 1964, the National Academy of Engineering is a branch of the National Academies, which includes the National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council. The National Academy of Engineering has a total U.S. membership of 2,195 and the number of foreign associates is 178.

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For more information about the National Academy of Engineering, please visit:

www.nae.edu

For more news and information about the University of California, please visit:

www.universityofcalifornia.edu