Academia Sinica was delighted to hear the announcement from the Neutron Scattering Society of America (NSSA) on Feb.4, 2008 that Academician Sow-Hsin Chen is the recipient of the 2008 Clifford G. Shull Prize, which is the most prestigious academic honor given by NSSA.

The NSSA was formed in 1992, and presently has more than 1000 members from 26 countries. The Clifford G. Shull Prize is designed to recognize outstanding research in neutron science and leadership in promoting the North American neutron scattering community. It is named in honor of Clifford G. Shull, who received the Nobel Prize in 1994.

The Prize is awarded biannually, and consists of a plaque and an honorarium of $5,000. The recipient is invited to present plenary lecture at the American Conference on Neutron Scattering (ACNS).

The Prize citation for Prof. Chen reads: "For seminal contributions to understanding the dynamical properties of supercooled and interfacial water using neutron scattering techniques, and for an exceptional record of training young scientists in the use of scattering techniques to solve topical interdisciplinary problems in complex fluids and soft matter."

Academician Sow-Hsin Chen is now a Professor in the Department of Nuclear Science and Engineering, Nuclear Science and Technology Division, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA. He is a Fellow of American Physical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He received the U.S. Senior Scientist Award (1987-1988) and "Revisit" award (1995) from Alexander von Humboldt of Germany.

In the spring of 1995, as a Fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Academician Chen spent a month in Kyoto University in addition to conducting a lecture tour to many Japanese universities and research institutes. Prof. Chen also received the Career Achievement Award of the Nuclear Science and Engineering Department of MIT in 2002, and is a recipient of the PNAS Cozzarelli Prize in 2006 for a paper of outstanding scientific excellence and originality published in PNAS (USA). He is a Fellow of the International Atomic Energy Agency (1958-1959), and a Member of the Sigma XI Honor Society and Phi Lambda Fraternity.