University of Iowa Technology Institute (ITI) researchers were recognized by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) as being among the nation’s best for their "exceptional approach to solving a public health problem.”
Jun Wang, ITI assistant director and professor of chemical and biochemical engineering, and Huanxin (Jessie) Zhang, a postdoctoral research scholar in Wang’s Atmospheric and Environmental Research Lab, collaborated with a team from the CDC to publish an analysis of solar and UV irradiance data.
Their paper, “Compilation and spatio-temporal analysis of publicly available total solar and UV irradiance data in the contiguous United States,” was among 14 finalists in the data methods and study design category at the 2020 Charles C. Shepard Science Award Ceremony earlier this month.
The category recognizes “the development and demonstration of an outstanding or exceptional approach to solving a public health problem.”
The paper was published in the Environmental Pollution journal in 2019. Other collaborators include Ying Zhou, Xia Meng, Jessica Hartmann Belle, Caitlin Kennedy, Mohammad Z. Al-Hamdan, and Yang Liu.
The awards are given through the CDC and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry and CDC established the Shepard award in 1986 in honor of “the internationally recognized microbiologist who was chief of the Leprosy and Rickettsia Branch at CDC for more than 30 years, until his death on February 18, 1985, according to the CDC.
Here’s more about the award from the CDC.
Awards can be given for scientific publications and for lifetime scientific achievement. For scientific publications, the award is presented to the best manuscript on original research published by a CDC or ATSDR scientist in a reputable, peer-reviewed journal. For lifetime scientific achievement, the award is given to an individual with a body of scientific work contributing to public health. In some years, the award may not be given in all categories.