Four Early-Career Faculty Receive Top Award From White House

Bohórquez, who is also an associate research professor in neurobiology and an associate professor of cell biology and neurobiology, is a gut-brain neuroscientist. He is a leading researcher in the relatively new area of sensory neurobiology that explores the connections and communications between the gut and the brain. His research investigates how the brain perceives what the gut feels, how food in the intestine is sensed by the body, and how a nutrient or microbial signal is transformed into an electrical signal that affects behavior.  

Brinkley-Rubinstein is a national expert in examining how the criminal legal system impacts people, families, and communities. During the pandemic, she co-founded the COVID Prison Project, one of the only national data projects that tracks and analyzes COVID testing, cases, and deaths in prison systems across the country. Her work blends research and policy, which has recently culminated in providing expert consultation to congress relevant to prison standards and data reporting. 

Randles’ pioneering work has led to computational advancements that allow researchers to optimize the use of supercomputers and cloud computing resources, enabling them to create detailed multiscale models while still significantly reducing computational demands. One of her most widely recognized projects is a massively parallel fluid dynamics simulation, known as HARVEY. Named after William Harvey, the scientist who discovered the circulation of blood, Randles first used the software to perform the first ever full-body scale simulation of 3D blood flow at the cellular level.

Roy’s work focuses on developing hardware for artificial intelligence applications using novel functional materials including two-dimensional materials. By modeling computer architecture after the basic structure of synapses and neurons – known as neuromorphic hardware – it can be manufactured to be better adapted to pattern recognition algorithms. She also focuses on high-power electronics made with gallium nitride and other wide bandgap semiconductors. Gallium nitride is a semiconductor that is poised to replace silicon in certain areas of computer hardware. Because of its physical characteristics, the material is well suited for high-energy and high-radiation applications, such as those found outside of the Earth’s atmosphere.

Established in 1996, the 5-year award recognizes scientists and engineers who show exceptional potential for leadership early in their research careers.

This year’s awardees are employed or funded by 14 participating agencies within the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Education, Energy, Health and Human Services, Interior, Transportation, and Veterans Affairs and the Environmental Protection Agency, the intelligence community, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the National Science Foundation, and the Smithsonian Institution

For a full list of the 2024 awardees, see the White House press release.