UF's Jim Jones named to National Academy of Engineering

February 15, 2012

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Climate-science expert Jim Jones, a distinguished service professor emeritus in the agricultural and biological engineering department and director of the Florida Climate Institute, has been elected to the National Academy of Engineering, or NAE.

He was one of 66 new members announced Feb. 9. Election to NAE is one of the highest professional distinctions an engineer can achieve. Potential members can only be nominated by a current member and are elected by the NAE membership.

Jones was elected to NAE’s Special Fields & Interdisciplinary Engineering Section, which encompasses agricultural engineering and atmospheric sciences. It is one of 12 sections representing broad engineering categories.

Jones was elected on the basis of his outstanding contributions to engineering, notably his work on climate change, environmental impacts and sustainable agricultural systems. He is perhaps best known for developing computer models to support agricultural decision-making. These models help farmers make crop-yield projections under various weather, soil and management conditions.

A member of the UF faculty since 1977, Jones previously worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and was a faculty member with Mississippi State University. He earned a bachelor’s degree in agricultural engineering from Texas Tech in 1967, a master ‘s degree in agricultural and biological engineering from Mississippi State University in 1970 and a doctorate in biological and agricultural engineering from North Carolina State University in 1975.

Founded in 1964, NAE is a branch of the National Academies. It is a private, independent, institution that promotes the engineering profession. Altogether, NAE has a U.S. membership of 2,254, including at least five other UF faculty members.
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