The William D. (Bill) Mensch, Jr. Embedded Intelligence Endowment Fund for the Arizona Astrobiology Center
Description: The Mensch Prize at the UAZ Arizona Astrobiology Center (AABC) was established in 2023 to provide a permanent source of annual funds for the AABC to support interdisciplinary student research. This fund will support (1) undergraduate and (1) graduate student annually at the discretion of the AABC Director.
The selection criteria are:
· One UArizona graduate student and one undergraduate student in any major or academic path.
· The academic merit and originality of the student’s research or project
· The project’s relevance to the field of astrobiology,
· The potential impact it could have on advancing our understanding and discussion of life in the universe.
The prize seeks to honor students who demonstrate creativity, interdisciplinary thinking, and a commitment to pushing the boundaries of our knowledge in astrobiology.
Award Information:
-Number of Prizes: 2 (one undergraduate & one graduate) Prize Amount: $1,000 each
-Eligibility: Open to all UArizona graduate and undergraduate students
-Focus: Thesis, research, or creative projects that connect to related to Astrobiology. The prize seeks to honor students who demonstrate creativity, interdisciplinary thinking, and a commitment to pushing the boundaries of our knowledge in astrobiology.
Application Process:
Deserving students are nominated by a faculty member. Starting with the Spring 2025 semester, Start and End dates for the submission will be 2/1 – 2/28. Applications are to be submitted via the form available through the AABC. Below is an example of the form from the 2024 award cycle.
2024 Prize Recipients
2024 Mensch Prize Recipient Article from AABC
Below are the names and Thesis topics for the 2024 Mensch Prize recipients
Garret Wilson
Undergraduate Mensch Prize
Garret was selected for his work on the project “Understanding the Differential Loss of Ancient Proteins.”
Lilia Koelemay
Graduate Mensch Prize
Lilia was selected for her work identifying organic and prebiotic molecules in circumstellar envelopes using radio astronomy.