“Rensselaer has turned out quite a large number of successful astronomers!” says Heidi Newberg ’87, associate professor of physics, applied physics, and astronomy.

Many alumni found each other at the American Astronomical Society meeting in Seattle in January. From left, are Dave Leisawitz ’79, Dawn (Leeber) Gelino ’96, Tom Pannuti ’94, Erika Gibb, Ph.D. ’01, Sachin Shenoy, Ph.D. ’03 (top), Michael Egan ’87, Ph.D. ’93 (bottom), Heidi Newberg ’87, Anthony Milano ’07 (top), Roberta Paladini (bottom), Perry Gerakines ’93, Ph.D. ’98, Sean Carey ’88, Ph.D. ’95, and Don Mizuno, Ph.D. ’95. Also attending but not pictured were Saavik Ford ’98, David Joiner ’99, Isabel Ojalvo ’07, Ben Mohlie ’07, and Kristen Larson ’99.

John Condeelis ’71 has been elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, in recognition of his distinguished contributions to the field of cell motility and the cytoskeleton and for furthering our understanding of amoeboid motion and the role of cell chemotaxis in cancer.

Condeelis is co-chair and professor of anatomy and structural biology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University. He also is faculty supervisor of Einstein’s Analytical Imaging Facility and principal investigator of the National Cancer Institute-funded Tumor Microenvironment Study.

He is widely published and a recent paper, appearing in the October 2006 issue of the Journal of Cell Biology, was ranked the “#1 hidden jewel” on the Faculty of 1000 Biology Web site.

He joined the Einstein faculty in 1977, following the completion of his postdoctoral fellowship in cell biology at Harvard University. Condeelis earned his bachelor’s degree in physics at Rensselaer and his Ph.D. from State University of New York, Albany.