UA Archaeologist Named AAAS Fellow

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Dr. Richard Diehl, a University of Alabama archaeologist specializing in MesoAmerica, has been awarded the distinction of AAAS Fellow. 

Election as a Fellow is an honor bestowed upon members of the American Association for the Advancement of Science by their peers. 

“This is a tremendous accomplishment,” said Dr. Joe Benson, vice president for research at The University of Alabama, in congratulating Diehl on the award. “This certainly sets Dick Diehl apart, as he becomes one of only four AAAS Fellows at UA and one of only 22 statewide.” 

Diehl, professor emeritus of anthropology, retired from UA in 2006, but remains active in teaching, research and other professional pursuits. 

This year 503 members have been awarded this honor by AAAS because of their scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications. 

New Fellows will be presented with an official certificate and a gold and blue (representing science and engineering, respectively) rosette pin on Saturday, Feb.19 from 8 to 10 a.m. at the AAAS Fellows Forum during the 2011 AAAS Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. 

This year’s AAAS Fellows will be announced in the AAAS News & Notes section of the journal Science on Jan. 28. 

As part of the Anthropology Section, Diehl was elected as an AAAS Fellow for his “distinguished contributions to Mesoamerican research in archaeology, particularly the Olmec and Toltec civilizations, and for public science communication in archaeology.” 

The tradition of AAAS Fellows began in 1874. Currently, members can be considered for the rank of Fellow if nominated by the steering groups of the Association’s 24 sections, or by any three Fellows who are current AAAS members (so long as two of the three sponsors are not affiliated with the nominee’s institution), or by the AAAS chief executive officer. 

Each steering group then reviews the nominations of individuals within its respective section and a final list is forwarded to the AAAS Council, which votes on the aggregate list. 

The Council is the policymaking body of the Association, chaired by the AAAS president, and consisting of the members of the board of directors, the retiring section chairs, delegates from each electorate and each regional division, and two delegates from the National Association of Academies of Science. 

UA’s department of anthropology is part of the College of Arts and Sciences, the University’s largest division and the largest liberal arts college in the state. Students from the College have won numerous national awards including Rhodes Scholarships, Goldwater Scholarships and memberships on the USA Today Academic All American Team. 

 The American Association for the Advancement of Science, or AAAS, is the world’s largest general scientific society, and publisher of the journal, Science, as well as Science Translational Medicine and Science Signaling. AAAS was founded in 1848, and includes 262 affiliated societies and academies of science, serving 10 million individuals. Science has the largest paid circulation of any peer-reviewed general science journal in the world, with an estimated total readership of 1 million. The non-profit AAAS  is open to all and fulfills its mission to “advance science and serve society” through initiatives in science policy, international programs, science education and more.