World Academy of Art and Science
Encyclopedia
The World Academy of Art and Science (WAAS) is an international non-governmental scientific organization, an informal and non-official world network of individual fellows elected for distinguished accomplishments in the fields of natural and social sciences, arts and the humanities. The Academy has been striving to promote the growth of human knowledge, and to enhance public awareness of the social consequences and policy implications of that growth.
The idea of founding the Academy was voiced in the 1950s by leading scientists who were concerned about the potential for misuse of scientific discoveries. They included Albert Einstein
, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and Joseph Rotblat
who had been involved in the development of the atomic bomb; Bertrand Russell
philosopher and pacifist; Joseph Needham
, a co-founder of UNESCO; Lord Boyd Orr, the First Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization; George Brock Chisholm, the First Director General of the World Health Organization
; John A. Fleming, former President of the International Council of Scientific Unions; as well as Hermann Joseph Muller
, Harold C. Urey, Francis Perrin
, Panchanan Maheshwari, Theodore Monod
, Detlev Bronk
, Harold Lasswell
and other outstanding scholars and public figures. The Academy was organized in December, 1960 with the aim of creating an informal world association of the highest scientific and ethical norms and standards.
At present the Academy restricts its membership to 700 Fellows and Associate Fellows from all parts of the world. It has a secretariat in the U.S.A and has divisions in North America and South Eastern Europe. It holds conferences and seminars on a wide range of topics and issues relating to the spread and application of knowledge in such diverse fields as biotechnology, employment, environment, globalization, global security, nuclear disarmament, information revolution and social development. Election qualifications in the WAAS is similar to those of national academies.
In an effort to put new vigor and dynamism to the commitments of the founders, in 2005 WAAS formed a standing committee on Peace and Development to strengthen its efforts to bring about an abolition of the nuclear weapons. In achieving this goal, the Academy is also composed of leading politicians, statesmen and heads of various counties as well as Nobel Prize winners.
Election in the WAAS is considered as one of the highest honors that can be accorded a scientist.
The Academy is managed by a 19 member board of trustees with a president at the helm. The president since February 2008 is Jeffrey H. Schwartz
, a professor of the University of Pittsburgh
noted for his works in evolutionary biology and anthropology
.
The idea of founding the Academy was voiced in the 1950s by leading scientists who were concerned about the potential for misuse of scientific discoveries. They included Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein
Albert Einstein was a German-born theoretical physicist who developed the theory of general relativity, effecting a revolution in physics. For this achievement, Einstein is often regarded as the father of modern physics and one of the most prolific intellects in human history...
, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and Joseph Rotblat
Joseph Rotblat
Sir Joseph Rotblat, KCMG, CBE, FRS , was a Polish-born, British-naturalised physicist.His work on nuclear fallout was a major contribution to the agreement of the Partial Test Ban Treaty...
who had been involved in the development of the atomic bomb; Bertrand Russell
Bertrand Russell
Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, OM, FRS was a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, and social critic. At various points in his life he considered himself a liberal, a socialist, and a pacifist, but he also admitted that he had never been any of these things...
philosopher and pacifist; Joseph Needham
Joseph Needham
Noel Joseph Terence Montgomery Needham, CH, FRS, FBA , also known as Li Yuese , was a British scientist, historian and sinologist known for his scientific research and writing on the history of Chinese science. He was elected a fellow of the Royal Society in 1941, and as a fellow of the British...
, a co-founder of UNESCO; Lord Boyd Orr, the First Director General of the Food and Agriculture Organization; George Brock Chisholm, the First Director General of the World Health Organization
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations that acts as a coordinating authority on international public health. Established on 7 April 1948, with headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the agency inherited the mandate and resources of its predecessor, the Health...
; John A. Fleming, former President of the International Council of Scientific Unions; as well as Hermann Joseph Muller
Hermann Joseph Muller
Hermann Joseph Muller was an American geneticist, educator, and Nobel laureate best known for his work on the physiological and genetic effects of radiation as well as his outspoken political beliefs...
, Harold C. Urey, Francis Perrin
Francis Perrin
Francis Perrin was a French physicist,the son of Nobel prize-winning physicist Jean Perrin.- Physicist :Francis Perrin was born in Paris and attended École Normale Supérieure in Paris.In 1928 he obtained a doctorate in mathematical sciences from the faculté des sciences of Paris, based upon a...
, Panchanan Maheshwari, Theodore Monod
Théodore Monod
Théodore André Monod was a French naturalist, explorer, and humanist scholar.-Exploration:...
, Detlev Bronk
Detlev Bronk
Detlev Wulf Bronk was President of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland from 1949 to 1953 and President of the National Academy of Sciences from 1950 to 1962. Bronk is credited with reshaping the postwar university environment at Hopkins...
, Harold Lasswell
Harold Lasswell
Harold Dwight Lasswell was a leading American political scientist and communications theorist. He was a member of the Chicago school of sociology and was a professor at Yale University in law. He was a President of the American Political Science Association and World Academy of Art and Science...
and other outstanding scholars and public figures. The Academy was organized in December, 1960 with the aim of creating an informal world association of the highest scientific and ethical norms and standards.
At present the Academy restricts its membership to 700 Fellows and Associate Fellows from all parts of the world. It has a secretariat in the U.S.A and has divisions in North America and South Eastern Europe. It holds conferences and seminars on a wide range of topics and issues relating to the spread and application of knowledge in such diverse fields as biotechnology, employment, environment, globalization, global security, nuclear disarmament, information revolution and social development. Election qualifications in the WAAS is similar to those of national academies.
In an effort to put new vigor and dynamism to the commitments of the founders, in 2005 WAAS formed a standing committee on Peace and Development to strengthen its efforts to bring about an abolition of the nuclear weapons. In achieving this goal, the Academy is also composed of leading politicians, statesmen and heads of various counties as well as Nobel Prize winners.
Election in the WAAS is considered as one of the highest honors that can be accorded a scientist.
The Academy is managed by a 19 member board of trustees with a president at the helm. The president since February 2008 is Jeffrey H. Schwartz
Jeffrey H. Schwartz
Jeffrey Hugh Schwartz, PhD, is an American physical anthropologist and professor of biological anthropology at the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, President of the World Academy of Art and Science ....
, a professor of the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
noted for his works in evolutionary biology and anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
.
Past Presidents of the World Academy
- Lord John Boyd Orr
- Hugo Boyko
- Stuart Mudd
- Marion MushkatMarion MushkatProf Marion Mushkat was a Polish lawyer, colonel, judge, specialist of international public law, military law and international affairs.-Biography:...
- Detlev BronkDetlev BronkDetlev Wulf Bronk was President of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland from 1949 to 1953 and President of the National Academy of Sciences from 1950 to 1962. Bronk is credited with reshaping the postwar university environment at Hopkins...
- Harold LasswellHarold LasswellHarold Dwight Lasswell was a leading American political scientist and communications theorist. He was a member of the Chicago school of sociology and was a professor at Yale University in law. He was a President of the American Political Science Association and World Academy of Art and Science...
- Walter IsardWalter IsardWalter Isard was a prominent American economist, the principal founder of the discipline of Regional Science, as well as one of the main founders of the discipline of Peace Science....
- Ronald St. John MacdonaldRonald St. John MacdonaldRonald St. John Macdonald, CC was a Canadian legal academic and jurist.Born in Montreal, the son of R. St. John Macdonald and Elizabeth Smith, he served as a Sub-Lieutenant in the Royal Canadian Navy during World War II. When he returned to Canada he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1949...
- Carl-Göran HedénCarl-Göran HedénCarl-Göran Hedén was a distinguished Swedish scholar in the fields of Microbiology, Biotechnology and microbial physiology, D.Sc., Professor of the Karolinska Institute , a Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences since 1959 and of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences since...
- Harlan ClevelandHarlan ClevelandHarlan Cleveland was an American diplomat, educator, and author. He served as Lyndon Johnson's U.S. Ambassador to NATO, 1965–1969, and earlier as U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs, 1961-1965...
- Walter Truett AndersonWalter Truett AndersonWalter Truett Anderson is a political scientist, social psychologist, and author of numerous nonfiction books and articles in newspapers and magazines....