STONY BROOK, N.Y. — Charles Langmuir, who received his Ph.D. in Geochemistry from Stony Brook in 1980 was elected to the National Academy of Sciences, earning one of the most prestigious academic honors in the U.S.

As an undergraduate Charlie Langmuir majored in History of Science at Harvard, and he was transformed into a first-class geochemist by his mentor Professor Gil Hanson during his Graduate studies here at Stony Brook. He is now a Professor of Geochemistry in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at the Harvard University . Langmuir has also been a recipient of the prestigious N. L. Bowen Award from the American Geophysical Union and the Arthur Holmes Medal from the European Union of Geosciences.

“Election to the Academy is considered one of the highest honors in American science and engineering,” said Ralph Cicerone, President of the NAS.

The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) named a total of 72 new members and 18 foreign associates from 16 countries in recognition of “distinguished and continuing achievements in original research.” Those elected bring active membership of the NAS to 2,013. Foreign associates are non-voting members with citizenship outside the U.S. ; there are now 371 foreign associates in the NAS.

Dr. Douglas J Futuyma, Distinguished Professor in Stony Brook University 's renowned Department of Ecology and Evolution was also elected to the NAS and he becomes the 13th member of the faculty so honored. His research interests in evolution focus primarily on speciation and the evolution of ecological interactions among species. He has been a Guggenheim and a Fulbright Fellow, the President of the Society for the Study of Evolution and the President of American Society of Naturalists. He is the author of the successful textbook Evolutionary Biology.

“We are so very proud of Charles Langmuir, Doug Futuyma, and the extraordinary research achievements that have earned them this well-deserved recognition,” said Stony Brook President Shirley Strum Kenny.

The National Academy of Sciences is a private organization of scientists and engineers dedicated to the furtherance of science and its use for the general welfare. It was established in 1863 by a congressional act of incorporation signed by Abraham Lincoln that calls on the Academy to act as an official adviser to the federal government, upon request, in any matter of science or technology.