Alum's Article Wins Cozzarelli Prize

Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, Ed.M.'98, Ed.D.'05, was awarded a 2009 Cozzarelli Prize, for her article, "Neural correlates of admiration and compassion"  published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). Immordino-Yang along with the article coauthors Andrea McColl, Hanna Damasio, and Antonio Damasio will receive the award at the National Academy of Sciences Annual Meeting on April 25, 2010, in National Harbor, Md.

The Cozzarelli Prize, established in 2005, is given annually to one published paper in each of six categories and recognizes outstanding contributions to the scientific disciplines represented by the National Academy of Sciences. This year the Cozzarelli Prize was chosen from more than 3,700 research articles published by PNAS in 2009.

"I think that the choice of this paper for the Cozzarelli Prize speaks to the promise of an interdisciplinary human developmental and neuroscientific approach in the scientific study of complex, subjective mental states like social emotions," Immordino-Yang said. "Understanding the biology and psychology of the emotions that guide our social behavior and decisions is highly relevant to current questions in education. This study represents our first attempt to align neuroimaging and qualitative interview methods in order to explore the connections between the mind and body during the feeling of uniquely human, profoundly motivating emotions like admiration and compassion."

"Mary Helen Immordino-Yang is making remarkable contributions not only to basic research on brain functioning in emotions but also to connecting neuroscience to educational practice," said Professor Kurt Fischer. "This groundbreaking research shows the importance of basic bodily functions in emotions. At the same time she works with practitioners to unravel how what happens in classrooms relates with students' emotional lives."

PNAS is one of the world's most cited multidisciplinary scientific journals. PNAS covers the biological, physical, and social sciences and mathematics and publishes cutting-edge research reports, commentaries, reviews, perspectives, colloquium papers, and actions of the Academy. PNAS publishes weekly in print, and daily online in PNAS Early Edition.