Class of 1965 Term Chairs: Dr. Devlin
and Dr. Thompson-Schill
SAS Dean Samuel H. Preston
is pleased to announce that associate professor of physics
and astronomy Dr. Mark Devlin, and associate professor of
psychology Dr. Sharon Thompson-Schill, have been appointed
Class of 1965 Term Professors in the School of Arts and Sciences.
Dr. Devlin joined the department
of physics and astronomy in 1996 as assistant professor before
his promotion to associate professor in 2000. He holds a B.A.
from the University of Wisconsin and M.S. and Ph.D. from the
University of California at Berkeley.
In addition to serving as a member
of the astrophysics group, Dr. Devlin is a project leader in
Penn's experimental cosmology group, which studies the
cosmic microwave background (CMB) providing evidence for the
Big Bang theory. He is specifically interested in measuring
temperature fluctuations in the CMB on different angular scales
to determine the mass of the universe. Dr. Devlin has led the
development of groundbreaking instruments such as the Mobile
Anisotropy Telescope (MAT) and the Penn Bolometer Array (PBA)
to advance the scholarship of the CMB.
Dr. Devlin's pioneering research
has earned him a National Science Foundation Early Career Development
Award and a Sloan Foundation Fellowship, which supports promising
young scholars in the scientific community. His work has been
published in Astronomical Journal, Astrophysical
Journal, and IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science.
Dr. Thompson-Schill came to Penn
in 1996 after earning her BA in psychology from Davidson College
and her Ph.D. in psychology from Stanford University. She was
a postdoctoral fellow in psychology and neurology at Penn until
1999, when she was appointed to assistant professor of psychology.
She was promoted to associate professor earlier this year and
has taught cognitive neuroscience since she came to the University.
In addition to her appointment
in the department of psychology, Dr. Thompson-Schill serves
as associate professor of psychology in neurology in the School
of Medicine and is a member of the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience
(CCN), Institute for Research in Cognitive Science (IRCS),
and Institute for Neurological Science (INS).
Dr. Thompson-Schill's areas
of interest include neural bases of cognition with an emphasis
on conceptual knowledge, memory, and language. Her current
work involves brain imaging of volunteers performing complex
cognitive tasks as well as investigations of impaired cognition
in patients suffering brain injury as a result of stroke or
disease. The leader of several ongoing laboratory projects,
she is currently overseeing research on visual knowledge in
the congenitally blind; language processing in bilingual speakers;
neural systems that help regulate emotional reactions; visual
imagery in normal and brain-damaged populations; and the relationship
between short-term memory and language. Along with primary
support from the National Institute of Mental Health, Dr. Thompson-Schill
has received research grants from the McDonnell-Pew Program
in Cognitive Neuroscience, National Institute on Aging, and
National Science Foundation.
Dr. Thompson-Schill is the recipient
of numerous honors including the National Science Foundation's
Professional Opportunities for Women in Research and Education
Award, Searle Scholars Award, and Young Investigator Award
from the Cognitive Neuroscience Society. She was also listed
in the Undergraduate Course Guide's "Professors Hall
of Fame" in 2001.
In addition to co-authoring a preparation
book for the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) in psychology,
she has contributed to scholarly publications such as Proceedings
of the National Academy of Science, Neuron, and Journal
of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory and Cognition.
Her commitment to the University
includes active involvement in educational initiatives for
the psychology department, the neuroscience graduate group,
and the Provost's Strategic Planning Committee. She also
serves as co-director of the IRCS/CCN Summer Institute in Cognitive
Science and Cognitive Neuroscience.
The Class of 1965 Endowed Term
Chair is one of five created by the Class in 1990. This unprecedented
25th Reunion class gift funded a chair for each of the four
undergraduate schools and one in honor of the College for Women.
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