Biophysical Society Bulletin | October 2024

President’s Message

Awardees Define Excellence for BPS As the Biophysical Society pres ident, it has been my duty and privilege to chair the BPS Fellows

humbling to learn in some depth about the contributions of fellow BPS members to cutting-edge, rigorous knowledge. I was reminded that the “giants” on whose shoulders science thrives still walk among us and can be found at all career lev els, and across all fields of investigation. This abundance also made our selection task very difficult. Each nominee has a unique record of contributions and not one criterion captures any one member’s tapestry of accom plishments. This is why selection cannot be done by artificial intelligence! On the contrary, it is important to acknowledge that excellence is a value judgement that is far from being an absolute or theoretical concept, but it is one that has strong historical and cultural components. In other words, what we recognize as “excellent” reflects a set of values and priorities that change over time. In effect, it is the role of these two committees, the Awards Committee and the Fellows Com mittee, to define excellence in biophysics annually, based on frank evaluations of the nominations submitted in each cycle. In turn, the slate of nominees, through the awardees’ accom plishments, broadcasts this definition. For this reason, it is important not only to have a large pool of diverse nominees, but also to have evaluation committees that are diverse. During the deliberations, it was very inter esting to note that, in addition to the uniform guidance, each committee member had a unique set of criteria for ranking nominees. Some still consider the number of publications or the prestige of the journals in which a nominee publish es as the most important metric of impact. Others swear by the h-index, or the number of patents, or the number of invitations at national and international meetings. Given this variety, it was just miraculous that after hearing from each committee member, a short discussion shaped a unanimous decision for each award. Yet, the number of awards is limited, and, yes, many meritorious nominees were not selected this year. Some nominators might be disappointed or even frus trated. If you are one of them, please know that your efforts are appreciated, and please persist! I was gratified to learn that all committee members agreed that science cannot be done in a vacuum, and all considered BPS engagement as an integral part of the excellence the Society should aim to recognize through its annual awards. Sustained membership, regular participation in meetings, publishing in and reviewing for BPS journals, and engagement with governance and leadership were all highly valued. Was the process perfect? In my opinion: pretty close, but I am open to opinions to the contrary. I know we can and will do more to recognize all areas of research where biophysics has a positive impact. Here, our Subgroups can be helpful in

Committee and to participate in the BPS Awards Committee, chaired by Linda Columbus . Both committees met over the sum mer to review the nominations and select the winners, who were announced last month. I cannot wait to congratulate all

Gabriela K. Popescu

the awardees personally in February! Here, I want to share with you some of the feelings, thoughts, and insights I gained following this experience, some of which will stay with me for a long time and will guide me in the future. I am immensely proud of all the 2025 BPS Awardees (www. biophysics.org/Awards-Funding/Society-Awards)! By recog nizing their work and accomplishments, BPS makes a bold assertion about the state of biophysics in the world, which is strong and flourishing. In turn, through their accomplishments and identities, the BPS Awardees publicize annually the values BPS stands for: excellence and integrity, diversity and equity, and a global community. I am indebted to the many colleagues who assembled and submitted nominations. My dad used to say: “Gabi, you cannot pass an exam you don’t show up for!” And it is true for awards as well! No one can win an award they have not been nominated for. More importantly, BPS cannot recognize members who are not nominated, regardless of how out standing they may be. Therefore, I am again making an appeal here to consider nominating yourself or a deserving colleague in the next cycle, which will open January 1, 2025. Famil iarize yourself with the BPS Awards (www.biophysics.org/ Awards-Funding/Society-Awards), and should you need help in assembling a nomination, do contact us (awards@biophys ics.org). Assistance is available through our many committees (www.biophysics.org/About-BPS/Governance/Committees) and through our knowledgeable staff (society@biophysics. org). The larger and more diverse the pool of nominees, the more accurately representative of our values will be the slate of awardees! This year, we received a large number of meritorious nomi nations. The BPS Fellows Committee received 39 nomination packages, from which we selected 6 BPS members (or 1% of membership, as per our policies). The BPS Awards Committee reviewed 85 nominations, from which we selected 13 mem bers. This abundance reflects the fact that BPS is fortunate to count among its members numerous highly accomplished scientists across career levels and areas of research. It was

October 2024

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