20 faculty members were elected as 2021 fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Professor Gordon Belot was one of them. AAAS announced the 564 scientists, engineers and innovators recognized for their achievements Jan. 26.
Professor Belot's primary interests are in philosophy of physics, philosophy of science, metaphysics, and epistemology. His book, Geometric Possibility, explores the feasibility of adapting standard accounts of physical possibility to provide an account of geometric possibility of the sort required by relationalism about space. Most of his papers are concerned with inter-theory relations in physics, with the interpretative, methodological, and metaphysical implications of symmetry principles, or with confirmation and underdetermination.
His current project concerns general relativity, cosmology, and boundary conditions. Before joining the faculty at Michigan in 2008, he taught at Princeton University, New York University, and the University of Pittsburgh. He has held a post-doctoral fellowship from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and fellowships from the National Science Foundation, the American Council of Learned Societies, and the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences. Geometric Possibility won the 2014 Lakatos Award.
AAAS was founded in 1848 and includes almost 300 affiliated societies and academies of science, serving 10 million individuals. In being elected an AAAS fellow, Gordon joins the ranks of Dr. W. E. B. Du Bois, Dr. Ellen Ochoa, Dr. Steven Chu, and Admiral Grace Hopper. AAAS has recognized esteemed members of the scientific community since 1874 and election as a fellow of AAAS is a lifetime honor. AAAS as a non-profit is open to everyone. Its mission is to “advance science and serve society” through initiatives in "science policy, international programs, science education, public engagement, and more".
Please help our department in congradulating Gordon Belot on this great honor.
