Chemical Engineering Professor Jacob Israelachvili has been elected to the prestigious National Academy of Sciences.

The organization made the announcement April 20, naming 72 new members and 18 associates from other countries. Sixteen of the 72 new members, including Israelachvili, are from UC campuses, including UC Berkeley, UC Los Angeles, UC Davis and UC San Francisco. Israelachvili said he is honored to be elected to the academy.

“I wasn’t expecting it,” Israelachvili said. “It’s wonderful to be recognized like this by one’s peers, especially out of the blue.”

Chancellor Henry Yang said the university is proud of Israelachvili’s appointment.

“Being elected to the National Academy is a prized distinction, one that reflects the highest regard of one’s peers in the scientific community,” Yang said. “We congratulate our colleague Jacob Israelachvili and salute his scientific achievement.”

Israelachvili received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in physics from the University of Cambridge in England and later earned his Ph.D. in 1972. He joined the UCSB faculty in 1986.

Israelachvili’s research is in the general area of intermolecular and intersurface forces in complex fluid systems.

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