Physicist Giovanni Jona-Lasinio Wins 2012 Dannie Heineman Prize for Mathematical Physics
College Park, MD, February 24, 2012 —The American Institute of Physics (AIP) and the American Physical Society (APS) are pleased to announce that renowned physicist Giovanni Jona-Lasinio, Ph.D., has been selected as the 2012 recipient of the Dannie Heineman Prize for Mathematical Physics, which is given annually to recognize outstanding work in the field.
His citation reads: “For contributions to the interaction between statistical mechanics, field theory and the theory of elementary particles, including spontaneous symmetry breaking, critical phenomena and a general theory of dissipative systems.”
The prize is awarded on behalf of the Heineman Foundation by AIP and APS and will be presented to Jona-Lasinio on February 27 at the 2012 APS March Meeting in Boston, Mass. The award consists of a certificate and $10,000.
“I am greatly honored for this award and grateful to the American Institute of Physics and the American Physical Society,” said Jona-Lasinio.
Jona-Lasinio received his doctoral degree in physics from the University of Rome in 1956. He became a researcher at the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare in Rome, and an assistant professor in the physics department at the University of Rome. He then became a full professor at the University of Padua, Italy, in 1970, and returned to the University of Rome in 1974, where he is currently professor emeritus. Jona-Lasinio has spent several years abroad visiting the University of Chicago, CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, IHES (Institut des Hautes Etudes Scientifiques), and the Universite Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris.
Jona-Lasinio is most widely known for having constructed, with Yoichiro Nambu, the first model in elementary particle physics with spontaneous symmetry breaking. He also made the early introduction, with Carlo Di Castro in 1969, of the field theoretic renormalization group in the study of critical phenomena. He also developed a theory of stationary states far from equilibrium. He is also known for his mathematical contributions to the theory of stochastic processes and their applications in physics.
Jona-Lasinio has received many awards and honors. He is a member of the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei and has been awarded in Italy the Feltrinelli National Prize. He has served in scientific committees of the Universite Pierre et Marie Curie and the University of Geneva. He is presently a member of the Comite de Programmation Scientifique of the Institut Henri Poincare in Paris.
The Heineman Prize is named after Dannie N. Heineman, an engineer, business executive, and philanthropic sponsor of the sciences. The prize was established in 1959 by the Heineman Foundation for Research, Education, Charitable and Scientific Purposes, Inc.
About AIP
The American Institute of Physics is an organization of 10 physical science societies, representing more than 135,000 scientists, engineers, and educators. As one of the world’s largest publishers of scientific information in physics, AIP employs innovative publishing technologies and offers publishing services for its Member Societies. AIP’s suite of publications includes 15 journals, three of which are published in partnership with other societies; magazines, including its flagship publication Physics Today; and the AIP Conference Proceedings series. Through its Physics Resources Center, AIP also delivers valuable services and expertise in education and student programs, science communications, government relations, career services for science and engineering professionals, statistical research, industrial outreach, and the history of physics and other sciences.
About APS
The American Physical Society is a non-profit membership organization working to advance and diffuse the knowledge of physics through its outstanding research journals, scientific meetings, and education, outreach, advocacy and international activities. APS represents over 50,000 members, including physicists in academia, national laboratories and industry in the United States and throughout the world. Society offices are located in College Park, MD (Headquarters), Ridge, NY, and Washington, DC.
