Three scientists from some of Israel's leading and most prestigious research institutions were welcomed as the 2022 laureates of the prestigious Blavatnik Awards for Young Scientists in Israel at a ceremony held at the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation.
These prizes are awarded to scientists under the age of 42, who have already made significant achievements and show promise for future innovations in the fields of life sciences, chemistry and physical sciences and engineering.
The laureates
The first laureate was Noam Stern-Ginossar of Rehovot's Weizmann Institute of Science.
Stern-Ginossar won the life sciences award for developing groundbreaking analytical tools in order to study viral gene regulation in cytomegalovirus. The tools he developed have other applications, such as the use of ribosome profiling, which allows for the generation of high-resolution genome maps. This tool has already been applied to study the genome of SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
The second laureate was Menny Shalom of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.
Taking home the chemistry award, Shalom was recognized for developing types of materials for alternative energy. Specifically, his materials are low-cost, stable under harsh conditions and can be used in solar cells, fuel cells and batteries.
The third and final laureate, also from Weizmann, was Ronen Eldan, who was awarded the prize for physical science and engineering.
Eldan made groundbreaking contributions to the mathematical subject of high dimensional probability, which deals with datasets with a large number of variables. The techniques he developed have a wide range of applications ranging from statistics to computer science.
The three scientists, chosen out of some 37 nominees, received their award and a prize of $100,000 at a ceremony on June 8 at the Peres Center for Peace and Innovation in Tel Aviv, awarded by the Blavatnik Family Foundation, the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities and the New York Academy of Sciences.
The prize of a $100,000 grant was given at a ceremony that included performances by Aviv Geffen and Ester Rada and a special dinner by award-winning Israeli chef Assaf Granit.
“Israel's remarkable science is led by brilliant young men and women who push boundaries with discoveries that improve lives and expand knowledge.”
Len Blavatnik
“Israel's remarkable science is led by brilliant young men and women who push boundaries with discoveries that improve lives and expand knowledge,” Len Blavatnik, founder and chairman of Access Industries and head of the Blavatnik Family Foundation, said following the announcement of the winners back in February.
“We honor these three outstanding, innovative scientists for their significant contributions and look forward to their future work and discoveries in the years to come.”