Call for nominations for 2006 National Academies Communication Awards

January 31, 2006

On Feb. 1 the National Academies will begin accepting nominations for the 2006 National Academies Communication Awards for excellence in reporting and communicating science, engineering, and medicine to the public during 2005. Three $20,000 prizes will be awarded to individuals in three categories:

• Book author
• Newspaper, magazine, or online journalist
• TV/radio producer or reporter

Nominations must be completed online no later than April 7, and all supporting material must be postmarked by April 8. The winners will be honored at the National Academies' Beckman Center in Irvine, Calif., during the Keck FUTURES Conference to be held Nov. 9-12, 2006. For information on eligibility, submission requirements, and nomination procedures visit www.keckfutures.org/awards.

The winners of the Communication Awards will be selected by a panel of 10 judges:

• Barbara J. Culliton (committee chair, and member, Institute of Medicine), deputy editor, HEALTH AFFAIRS
• Donald Kennedy (committee vice chair, and member of National Academy of Sciences and Institute of Medicine), editor in chief, SCIENCE
• Deborah Blum, professor, School of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Wisconsin, Madison
• David Clark, producer/director, David Clark Inc.
• Peter Dykstra, executive producer, CNN Science and Technology
• Samuel C. Florman (member, National Academy of Engineering), chairman, Kreisler Borg Florman Construction Co.
• Lubert Stryer (member, National Academy of Sciences), Winzer Professor Emeritus, department of neurobiology, Stanford University School of Medicine
• Curt Suplee, science writer and former science editor, THE WASHINGTON POST
• Abigail Trafford, author and columnist, THE WASHINGTON POST
• Dan Vergano, science and medical reporter, USA TODAY

The awards are one component of the National Academies Keck FUTURES INITIATIVE, a far-reaching initiative designed to realize the untapped potential of interdisciplinary research. Funded by a $40 million grant from the W.M. Keck Foundation, the initiative sponsors conferences to bring together outstanding scientists, engineers, and medical researchers to pose new questions and share ideas for interdisciplinary research and communication - among researchers in these fields as well as between researchers and the wider public.The National Academies comprise the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and the National Research Council. They are private, nonprofit institutions that provide science, technology, and health policy advice under an 1863 congressional charter.

The W.M. Keck Foundation was established in 1954 by the late W.M. Keck, founder of the Superior Oil Company. The foundation's grantmaking is focused primarily on pioneering efforts in the areas of medical research, science, and engineering. Based in Los Angeles, the foundation also maintains a Southern California Grant Program that provides support in the areas of civic and community services with a special emphasis on children.

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

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