Bacow inducted into Academy of Arts & Sciences

President Larry Bacow was recognized by top minds in the country through his induction into the American Academy of Arts & Sciences (AAAS) this past Saturday in Harvard's Sanders Theater.

Bacow was one of 187 fellows and 29 foreign honorary members of the AAAS's Class of 2003. These inductees join the academy's 4,000 members, which include 150 Nobel laureates and 50 Pulitzer Prize winners.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, former CBS anchorman Walter Cronkite and recording industry pioneer Richard Dolby were among this year's inductees. Peter Agre, who shared the 2003 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Tufts medical school graduate Roderick MacKinnon, also joined the academy.

Bacow is Tufts' first inductee into the Educational, Scientific, Cultural, and Philanthropic Administration branch of the academy. New members to this branch include the presidents of UCLA, the University of Texas at Austin and Johns Hopkins.

He is also only the fourth faculty member from Tufts elected to the AAAS. Bacow joins Philosophy Professor Daniel Dennett, School of Medicine Professor Jerome P. Kassirer, and Professor Emeritus of Microbiology James Theodore Park.

AAAS President Patricia Meyer Specks said the academy was established not just as a place for academics, but for all kinds of prominent thinkers in society. Founded by John Adams, the AAAS was designed as a place for "thinkers and doers" to convene and share their ideas, Specks said.

In that spirit, four members of the AAAS Class of 2003 gave brief remarks before their induction.

One speaker, University of California Chemistry Professor Carolyn Betozzi used her discoveries in cell biology to show how academic research can inspire others. She recounted her first viewing of the movie "Fantastic Voyage," where a team of researchers miniaturize themselves and travel inside the body.

"I realized then that the human body could be just as mythic and cosmic as outer space," Betozzi said.

Betozzi stressed the importance of academy members sharing discoveries with future generations. "We should show students what we think the future is, and then follow them there," she said.

Philanthropist William Gates, Sr., father of the Microsoft founder, argued against the repeal of the estate tax. "Can there be a serious question about the rectitude of society recovering from its most successful citizens a fraction of the fortune they leave at the time of his death?," he said.

Gates prefaced his remarks by saying they did not represent the views of his son, but he repeatedly buttressed his argument by quoting billionaire Warren Buffet. His speech ended in loud applause and several audience members rose in a standing ovation.

Princeton English Professor and famous literary critic Michael Wood challenged audience members to find "the story that is not being told" inside literature. He argued that literature allows readers to "live with what might be the case," and this enabled people to see past the story presented and discover something within.

Among Tufts' peer intuitions, Dartmouth has 13 members and Amherst has seven. Harvard has over 100 faculty members in the AAAS.

The AAAS, in addition to selecting new members, focuses on funding academic programs and sponsoring visiting scholars at its headquarters in Cambridge. The academy has recently published studies on "Congress and the Court" and "War with Iraq: Costs, Consequences, and Alternatives."

In her opening address, Specks said the academy's current activities were designed to allow the best minds in America to help shape the country's future.

She encouraged members to "share your thoughts and activities of the academy's work, so the academy can fulfill its mission to society."