American Academy of Arts and Sciences
| American Academy of Arts and Sciences | |
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| legal form | Non-profit organization |
| founding | May 4, 1780 |
| founder |
John Adams , James Bowdoin and 60 others |
| Seat |
Cambridge , Massachusetts , United States |
| motto |
Sub Libertate Florent ("blossom in freedom") |
| sales | $ 19,534,769 (2017) |
| Members | approx. 5400 |
| Website | www.amacad.org |
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (short American Academy ) is one of the oldest and most prestigious honorary societies ( English honor society ) of the United States . Its over 5000 members, which can be selected exclusively by their peers in the academy are outstanding personalities from art (Engl. Art ) and science (English. Science ). It was founded in 1780 and is based in Cambridge , Massachusetts .
History and goals
The Academy was founded on May 4, 1780 on the initiative of John Adams , one of the Founding Fathers of the United States , and James Bowdoin , who later became the Academy's first President, with a total of 62 members. In the charter they wrote , it says about the goals of the academy:
"[...] in fine, to cultivate every art and science which may tend to advance the interest, honor, dignity, and happiness of a free, independent, and virtuous people."
"[...] in short, to cultivate every art and every science that is able to advance the interest, honor, dignity and joy of a free, independent and virtuous people."
From 1785 the Academy published memoirs , which were followed by the Proceedings in 1846 . Both were replaced in 1958 by Dædalus , the company's quarterly magazine from then on. The academy also awards a number of prizes, including the Rumford Prize ( thermodynamics and optics ) , which was founded in 1796, and the Amory Prize ( reproductive medicine and biology), which has been awarded since 1940.
In addition to the inclusion of outstanding personalities from art and science, today's activities include four main areas:
- Science, engineering and technology
- Social sciences, arts and education
- Global security and international affairs
- American Institutions and the Common Good
In this context, the company maintains a number of projects and awards research grants.
Members
With the admission of the 2017 class, the academy consists of around 5000 regular members and around 600 foreign honorary members . Among them are 250 Nobel Prize winners , 60 Pulitzer Prize winners and a number of recipients of other significant prizes and honors. The first woman accepted was Maria Mitchell in 1848. The longest serving living member is (as of 2019) probably Gerald Holton , who was elected to the academy in 1956 at the age of about 34. The total number of all living and deceased members since 1780 is over 13,000.
Potential new fellows are only nominated and elected by members who have already been accepted ( co-optation ). The strength of the respective age groups increased almost constantly, so 197 new members were accepted in the 2015 year. The highest number of new members was in 1992 with 244; only one member was elected seven times (first Edme Sebastien Jeaurat in 1783 , lastly Thomas Sherwin in 1836 ), and none at all in 1814.
Furthermore, all fellows are classified into five sections and 26 categories:
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- V. Public Affairs, Business and Administration
- Public Affairs , Journalism and Communication Studies
- Entrepreneurial , social and philanthropic leaders
- Personalities in leading positions in education, science and culture
In some cases, members are assigned to an overarching section (interclass) if their activities extend over more than one section.
Founding members
President
According to today's statutes, the office of President of the Academy should not be held by the same person for longer than five years.
- 1780-1790 James Bowdoin
- 1791-1814 John Adams
- 1814-1820 Edward Augustus Holyoke
- 1820-1829 John Quincy Adams
- 1829-1838 Nathaniel Bowditch
- 1838–1839 James Jackson
- 1839–1846 John Pickering
- 1846–1863 Jacob Bigelow
- 1863-1873 Asa Gray
- 1873-1880 Charles Francis Adams
- 1880-1892 Joseph Lovering
- 1892-1894 Josiah Parsons Cooke
- 1894–1903 Alexander Agassiz
- 1903-1908 William Watson Goodwin
- 1908-1915 John Trowbridge
- 1915–1917 Henry Pickering Walcott
- 1917-1919 Charles Pickering Bowditch
- 1919–1921 Theodore William Richards
- 1921-1924 George Foot Moore
- 1924-1927 Theodore Lyman
- 1927-1931 Edwin Bidwell Wilson
- 1931–1933 Jeremiah DM Ford
- 1933-1935 George Howard Parker
- 1935-1937 Roscoe Pound
- 1937-1939 Dugald C. Jackson
- 1939-1944 Harlow Shapley
- 1944-1951 Howard Mumford Jones
- 1951–1954 Edwin Herbert Land
- 1954–1957 John Ely Burchard
- 1957-1961 Kirtley F. Mather
- 1961–1964 Hudson Hoagland
- 1964–1967 Paul A. Freund
- 1967–1971 Talcott Parsons
- 1971-1976 Harvey Brooks
- 1976–1979 Victor Weisskopf
- 1979-1982 Milton Katz
- 1982-1986 Herman Feshbach
- 1986-1989 Edward H. Levi
- 1989-1994 Leo Beranek
- 1994–1997 Jaroslav Pelikan
- 1997-2000 Daniel C. Tosteson
- 2000-2001 James O. Freedman
- 2001-2006 Patricia Meyer Spacks
- 2006–2009 Emilio Bizzi
- 2010–2013 Leslie Cohen Berlowitz
- 2014–2018 Jonathan Fanton
- since 2018 David W. Oxtoby
Web links
- Official Homepage (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ Charter of Incorporation of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. American Academy of Arts and Sciences, accessed July 2, 2019 .
- ^ Projects. American Academy of Arts and Sciences, accessed March 23, 2015 .
- ^ Membership Classes and Sections. American Academy of Arts and Sciences, accessed February 23, 2015 .
- ^ Academy Bylaws. American Academy of Arts and Sciences, accessed July 2, 2019 .