Scientist is first woman to receive Gill Award

Monday's Gill Award and Symposium drew over 250 people to the Indiana Memorial Union for a day of neurobiology discussions and celebration of the achievement and accomplishment of those in the field. The biennial Symposium honored Harvard professor Carla Shatz's for her research on brain-eye interaction. Shatz received a $25,000 award and presented a keynote lecture.\nIn addition to Shatz's lecture, attendees at the day-long Symposium heard lectures from Dr. Alexander Niculescu of the IU School of Medicine, Anne Prieto and Joseph Steinmetz of the Department of Pyschological and Brain Sciences, Dr. David Bredt of Eli Lilly and Company and both Jack and Linda Gill, founders of the Gill Award and the Gill Center for Biomolecular Science at IU. \nIn addition to giving the award, the Gill Center plays a major role in developing and advancing IU's neuroscience program. The Gill center gives both undergraduate and graduate scholarships, endows faculty chairs in several departments of the College of Arts and Sciences, sponsors neurobiological seminars and is funding the construction of the new Multi-Science building on campus. The Symposium is just one thing the Gills do to bring light to the neuroscience program.\n"The Symposium showcases great science, individual faculty members, as well as attracting scientists and professors from other universities and honor a special one," said Jack Gill.\nShatz's findings have made a profound impact in the neuroscience community. She found that images and activity that come in through the eyes has a direct influence on brain development. In her lecture, Shatz discussed the importance of specific genes and the vast differences between the undeveloped eye of a pre-natal baby and the developed eye. She used color-coded pictures in her presentation to visualize the role that genes play in eye development. \nAssistant Professor of Psychology Dr. Anne Prieto, who lectured during the Symposium, thinks the impact of Shatz's findings have revolutionized neuroscience. \n"In the future, I see the work that she has done being turned into it's own field," she said. "Now we are seeing so many important questions arise just because of her discoveries."\nStudents, professors and the general public alike were welcomed at the Symposium. Throughout the day, attendees could come and go as they please and enjoy breaks for food and conversation. Della Cook, a professor of physical anthropology at IU, stayed throughout the entire day. \n"The Symposium is an exciting way to find out what other people are doing and how they organize their research," she said. "Understanding the biology of brain-eye relations is essential (for neuroscience)."\nMarisa Geoghegan, a recent IU graduate, came to the Symposium to hear Shatz's lecture specifically. \n"Some of the lecture was outside of my area of study, but I really liked (Shatz's) overall message," she said. "The pictures she showed were helpful."\nThe committee that selected Shatz to receive the award considered her as a person as well as a scientist. In the award presentation speech made by Linda Gill, stories about Shatz and quotes from her colleagues and family were used to paint the picture of her as a kind, dedicated and personable individual as well as a brilliant neuroscientist. Shatz is the first woman to receive the Gill Award. \n"She is a great role model for women," said Preito.\nShatz has devoted over two decades to studying the brain. \n"(To accomplish this research) it takes countless hours of work and personal sacrifice, personal attention to her staff and lab assistants, collaboration with researches worldwide, but most importantly an uncompromising search for answers that uncover the mysteries of the brain," Linda Gill said.