Director, Space Science Laboratory; Professor, Astronomy

Steven Beckwith has studied the formation and early evolution of extra-solar planetary systems, the evolution of young stars, and the birth of galaxies in the early universe. In 2004, he led the team that created the famous Hubble Ultra-Deep Field, the deepest portrait of the universe that led to the discovery of the most distant galaxies ever seen at that time. He has published approximately 200 articles and won several international awards for his work. He lectures worldwide and advises organizations in the United States and Europe on research policy.

Lester John and Lynne Dewar Lloyd Distinguished Professor, Bioengineering

Amy Herr focuses on understanding unique microscale phenomena to create measurement tools that advance the “mathematization” of biology and medicine. Herr received her Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Stanford University and has been recognized as a National Institutes of Health New Innovator, an Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellow, and a Visionary Award honoree by the City of Berkeley.

Professor of Public Policy and Economics, Haas Distinguished Chair in Economic Disparities

Hilary Hoynes is an economist and specializes in the study of poverty, inequality, and the effects of government tax and transfer programs on low-income families. Hoynes is a member of the American Economic Association’s Executive Committee, the Federal Commission on Evidence-Based Policy Making, and the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Building an Agenda to Reduce the Number of Children in Poverty by Half in 10 Years.

Professor, Film & Media

Kristen Whissel researches cinema and technological change; silent cinema and modernity; digital cinema; visual effects; and the history and theory of the stereoscope and 3D cinema. Whissel is the author of Spectacular Digital Effects: CGI and Contemporary Cinema and Picturing American Modernity: Traffic, Technology, and Silent Cinema. The latter received a Katherine Singer Kovacs honorable mention award. She was honored with a Divisional Distinguished Teaching Award from Cal. She currently serves on the editorial board of journal Film Criticism.

Vice Chancellor for Research, UC Berkeley