MacArthur Foundation honors Harvard faculty members, Radcliffe fellow

70652986 — Mon, 26 Mar 2007 06:28:04 -0400

Harvard faculty members and a Radcliffe fellow probing the mysteries of stem cells, the early universe, the modern practice of surgery, and the significance of public sights and modern ruins were honored Sept. 19 with the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation's $500,000, no-strings-attached "genius grants."

The four are Assistant Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology Kevin Eggan, Assistant Professor of Health Policy and Management and Assistant Professor of Surgery Atul Gawande, Professor of Astronomy and of Physics Matias Zaldarriaga, and Radcliffe fellow Anna Schuleit.

The four join 21 other MacArthur Foundation fellows engaged in a broad spectrum of endeavors - from deep sea exploring to journalism to sculpting - who have in common creativity and originality.

Zaldarriaga probes universe's start

50443248 — Tue, 24 Jul 2007 14:32:02 -0400

Matias Zaldarriaga is peering back into time to find his roots - and the roots of everything else ever created.
Zaldarriaga, named professor of astronomy in July, is an expert in cosmology, which is the study of the origins and evolution of the universe.

A theoretical astrophysicist, Zaldarriaga is trying to understand the faint cosmic whispers of the big bang, that split-second explosion of inconceivable violence when all matter was hurled outward on a journey that would form the universe around us - somewhere between 10 billion and 20 billion years ago.

The period from the big bang to about 400,000 years later, when radiation called the "cosmic microwave background" was formed, is the focus of Zaldarriaga's research.

all Matias Zaldarriaga stories

MacArthur Foundation honors Harvard faculty members, Radcliffe fellow

Zaldarriaga probes universe's start