Drumroll please

NCSE's Eugenie C. Scott has been awarded the National Academy of Sciences Public Welfare Medal, the most prestigious award from the most prominent scientific honor society in the nation (at least). Care to guess the reaction at Billy Dembski's place?:

Iâm heartened to see our tax dollars working to such good effect.

The NAS is a publicly chartered nonprofit, not a government agency. The award's past winners include Clinton science advisor Neal Lane (whose names are anagrams of one another), Herbert Hoover (for work done before his presidency), and J. Edgar Hoover (for actions taken while wearing men's clothing).

Also Norman Borlaug (father of the Green Revolution in the developing world), Carl Sagan, C. Everett Koop, and godfather of the National Forests Gifford Pinchot. Pretty good company to be in.

More like this

The National Academy of Sciences is to honor NCSE's executive director Eugenie C. Scott with its most prestigious award, the Public Welfare Medal. ... "the medal is presented annually to honor extraordinary use of science for the public good"; Scott was chosen "for championing the teaching of…
A well-deserved honor: The National Academy of Sciences Council has selected Eugenie C. Scott to receive its most prestigious award, the Public Welfare Medal. Established in 1914, the medal is presented annually to honor extraordinary use of science for the public good. The Council chose Scott for…
This just in: Eugenie Scott, Executive Director of the NCSE, has won the California Academy of Sciences Fellows Medal. This is somewhere between an Oscar and a Nobel. Congratulations Genie!!! Details... DARWIN DEFENDER TAKES TOP PRIZE California Academy of Sciences honors Dr. Eugenie C. Scott…
Scientific American names the 10 most important leaders in science and technology ... a press release from the National Center for Science Education OAKLAND, CA May 18, 2009 Barack Obama and Bill Gates are in good company. The NCSE's Dr. Eugenie C. Scott joins Obama and Gates as members of the…

J. Edgar Hoover (for actions taken while wearing men's clothing)

To be fair, he received the award for his application of scientific methods to crime prevention, without specifying which kind of outfit he wore at that moment, which is anybody's guess.

By Phillip IV (not verified) on 15 Jan 2010 #permalink