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Toni Taylor, right, of Condensed Matter and Thermal Physics (MST-10), with John Sarrao, also of MST-10, at the Jemez Room of the J. Robert Oppenheimer Study Center on Wednesday. Sarrao nominated Taylor for the Fellows Prize for Outstanding Leadership in Science and Engineering.

Taylor, Farrar garner Fellows leadership prize

Los Alamos National Laboratory has honored staff members Toni Taylor and Chuck Farrar with the 2003 Fellows Prize for Outstanding Leadership in Science and Engineering.

The newly minted awards were presented to Taylor, deputy leader for Condensed Matter and Thermal Physics (MST-10), and Farrar, from Weapons Response (ESA-WR), during Science Day activities on Wednesday at the Laboratory. Jack Hills of Theoretical Astrophysics (T-3), coordinator for the Laboratory Fellows, presented the awards, along with Deputy Director for Science and Technology Bill Press. Interim Director Pete Nanos selected the winners.

"It was my great pleasure to have had such a difficult choice selecting this year’s winners; it is a reflection of the talent of people at Los Alamos," Nanos said. "Chuck and Toni exemplify the future of leadership at Los Alamos."

Hills said much of the important technical work at the Laboratory is performed by teams, not individuals, and the Fellows began last year searching for an appropriate way to reward research leaders who aren’t necessarily line managers.

"We really wanted to recognized the immense value of leadership in science and engineering at the Laboratory . . . and to encourage these leaders to continue their work and serve as models for others," Hills said at the awards ceremony.

Hills said such leaders add value by setting directions for scientific and engineering work at the Laboratory, especially if they are outstanding scientists or engineers in their own rights, like Taylor and Farrar.

The committee that developed the criteria for the new award and reviewed the nominations was headed by Jerry Brackbill of Computational Fluid Dynamics (T-3), Hills said.

"Everyone involved in the selection process agreed that there were more ‘must award’ nominations than the two we were allowed to award," Hills said. "A number of individuals worthy of the award had to be passed over during this first year, but we hope that their nomination packages will be resubmitted next year.

"The two winners this year are truly worthy of the award and represent, collectively, the outstanding science and engineering leadership that we are trying to encourage within the Laboratory," he added.

The nomination form states that the award is "to commend individuals for outstanding scientific and engineering leadership at the Laboratory." The purpose of the award is "to recognize the immense value of leadership in science and engineering at the Laboratory," and "to stimulate the interest of talented young staff members in developing the skills and making the personal sacrifices necessary to become effective leaders."

Charles Farrar of Weapon Response (ESA-WR) also received the Fellows Prize for Outstanding Leadership in Science and Engineering during a ceremony at Wednesday's Science Day event. Photos by LeRoy N. Sanchez, Public Affairs

Farrar has worked in ESA Division and its predecessors for 20 years after obtaining a doctoral degree in civil engineering from the University of New Mexico. For nearly a decade he worked on structural engineering studies and earthquake safety in nuclear power plants and other nuclear structures

He is an expert in structural health monitoring and in technologies for detecting changes or damage in complex mechanical systems, ranging from bridges to nuclear weapons.

He has authored dozens of papers and conference reports and has served as an editor for the International Journal of Structural Health Monitoring and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers Journal of Vibration and Acoustics.

Farrar was instrumental in the recent establishment of the joint Engineering Institute for educational collaboration between the Laboratory and the Jacobs School of Engineering at the University of California, San Diego. A news release about the Institute is available at http://www.lanl.gov/orgs/pa/newsbulletin/2003/04/23/text06.shtml online. He also helps lead the Dynamics Summer School for undergraduate and first-year graduate students.

Taylor came to the Laboratory in 1986 after earning a doctoral degree from Stanford University to work on the Bright Source laser project and has devoted her career to developing novel ultrafast laser and other optical techniques to understand dynamical processes in a wide range of systems. She is project leader for advanced diagnostics in the High Energy Density Physics Program.

Taylor was elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society for "pioneering developments of ultrafast optoelectronic techniques and their use in understanding dynamical processes in electronic materials and devices." She serves as a director at large and publications editor for the Optical Society of America and was elected a Fellow of the Optical Society of America for "outstanding and sustained contributions to the development and spectroscopic application of ultrafast lasers."

Taylor has mentored many post-doctoral fellows and graduate students, and has authored more than 150 papers.

The Laboratory Fellows are selected by the Director for sustained, high-level achievements in programs of importance to the Laboratory; fundamental or important discoveries with widespread use; or recognized authorities in a field, including outside recognition and outstanding publications. The group also awards annual prizes for outstanding research. Information about the winners and other activities of the Fellows is available at http://int.lanl.gov/science/fellows online.

--Jim Danneskiold

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