6 Indian-Americans scientists bag Presidential Early Career Awards

Six Indian-Americans are among a talented group of 106 scientists and engineers who will be honoured by US President Barack Obama with the prestigious Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers - the highest US government prize for young independent researchers.

Established in 1996, the Presidential Early Career Awards highlight the key role that the administration places in encouraging and accelerating American innovation to grow economy and tackle greatest challenges.

The White House announced the names of the following Indian-Americans who have been selected for the Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers:

1) Milind Kulkarni (Purdue University)

The associate professor with the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Purdue University researches Programming Languages and Compilers that support efficient programming and high performance on emerging complex architectures.

2) Vikram Shyam (NASA)

The awardee is a technical innovator in fundamental aeronautics at NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.

3) Kiran Musunuru (Harvard University)

This assistant Professor of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard University and Associate Physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital, has developed a "genome editing" approach for permanently reducing cholesterol levels in mice.

4) Shwetak Patel (University of Washington)

This Washington Research Foundation Entrepreneurship Endowed Professor in Computer Science and Engineering and Electrical Engineering is a nationally recognised expert in sensor systems research.

5) Rahul Mangharam (University of Pennsylvania)

The scientist was selected for the award for having invented a new formal methodology to test and verify the correct operation of medical device software, saving lives and reducing care costs.

6) Sachin Patel (Vanderbilt University Medical Centre)

The Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, and Molecular Physiology and Biophysics Vanderbilt University Medical Centre, hopes to help alcoholics with his research.

"These early-career scientists are leading the way in our efforts to confront and understand challenges from climate change to our health and wellness," said Obama, who will present the awards at a ceremony this spring.

"We congratulate these accomplished individuals and encourage them to continue to serve as an example of the incredible promise and ingenuity of the American people," he said.

"The awardees are outstanding scientists and engineers," said the National Science Foundation Director France Cordova. "They are teacher-scholars who are developing new generations of outstanding scientists and engineers and ensuring this nation is a leading innovator," he said.

-With agency inputs