News

From navigating physical ruins to collaborating with master potters and glassblowers, hands-on, tactile engagement remains an essential part of how discoveries are made at IAS. In this article, Institute scholars discuss what discovery through process means to them, sharing how craftsmanship, practice, and the arts actively shape their pursuit of knowledge.

Myles W. Jackson, Ernst and Elisabeth Albers-Schönberg Professor in the History of Science in the School of Historical Studies, is among the 2026 electees to the American Philosophical Society. Alongside Jackson, five former scholars from the Schools of Historical Studies and Social Science were named as members of the society this year.

Ten former IAS scholars—and one who will join the Institute in the fall—have been elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). The Schools of Mathematics, Natural Sciences, and Social Science are represented in the 2026 cohort. Announced each spring, NAS membership represents a unique honor in recognition of original research.

Homotopy theorist Ishan Levy, Member (2025–26) and soon-to-be Visiting Professor (2026–31) in the School of Mathematics, was recognized this April in the Clay Research Awards for “remarkable work” on counterexamples to Ravenel’s Telescope Conjecture.

Among the 252 new members elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences this spring are thirteen scholars with connections to IAS. All four Schools are represented in this year’s cohort, described by the Academy as “leaders in academia, the arts, industry, journalism, philanthropy, policy, research, and science.”

It is anticipated that the Eiffel Tower will be engraved this year with the names of 72 women scientists—including three former School of Mathematics scholars. Cécile DeWitt-Morette, Member (1948–50); her friend and coauthor Yvonne Choquet-Bruhat, Member (1951–52, 1955); and Jacqueline Ferrand, Member (1956) are set to be recognized for their landmark work.

Michael O. Rabin, Member (1958) in the School of Mathematics, passed away on April 14. His obituary, highlighting the impact of his time at IAS, was published by the Communications of the ACM. Avi Wigderson, Herbert H. Maass Professor in the School, described Rabin as "a titan, one of the founding fathers of the theory of computation."

Thirteen IAS scholars have been named among the 2026 Breakthrough Prize Foundation laureates, recognizing research that significantly drives human knowledge. The honorees were described as having "constructed theories of the fundamental forces of nature and probed them to mind-blowing precision," as well as revealing "deep truths about the mathematical behavior of waves."

Seven former and three incoming Institute scholars have been appointed as 2026 Guggenheim Fellows. The consistent overlap between Guggenheim Fellows and IAS scholars is a testament to a shared commitment to truly boundary-pushing research.

Rashid Sunyaev, Distinguished Visiting Professor (2010–24) in the School of Natural Sciences, is the winner of the 2026 Fritz Zwicky Prize for Astrophysics and Cosmology. Sunyaev was cited for "his pioneering work on the cosmic microwave background and the theory of disk accretion."