Three University of Washington faculty members have been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Their work spans environmental science, computing and engineering, addressing challenges ranging from climate resilience and ecosystem sustainability to artificial intelligence and accessible healthcare technologies.
Founded in 1780, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences recognizes leaders across disciplines whose work advances research, public policy and the common good. The Academy elects roughly 250 members each year.
One of the scientists elected to this prestigious Academy is Magdalena Balazinska, professor of computer science and engineering and director of the Allen School, was elected for contributions to data management and data science, as well as her leadership roles at UW and nationally.
Balazinska develops data management systems and techniques to help users across domains process complex and large datasets more efficiently and more easily, including tabular data, images and videos, content generated by artificial intelligence, and scientific datasets. Her work has included systems for cloud analytics, stream processing, and video analysis among others.
Balazinska said joining the Academy shows how far science and engineering have come, while also highlighting future opportunities that will arise as AI reshapes research and discovery.
“AI has the potential to accelerate progress in ways I couldn’t have imagined at the start of my career,” she said.
