Two PEER colleagues were recently honored with election to the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), which is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to an engineer.
Jonathan D. Bray, faculty chair in earthquake engineering excellence and professor of geotechnical engineering, University of California, Berkeley, was elected for contributions to earthquake engineering and advances in mitigation of surface faulting, liquefaction, and seismic slope failure.
Jon has participated in numerous PEER projects, and recent activities include post-earthquake investigations in New Zealand and Napa, California, with an emphasis on liquefaction and surface fault rupture.
Ronald Hamburger, senior principal, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger Inc., San Francisco, was elected for advances in seismic design principles and practices for buildings through research and development of codes and guidelines.
Ron has been in a technical advisory role to PEER since its inception, and his recent participation has been in PEER’s Tall Building Initiative and performance based design.
Membership to the National Academy of Engineering honors those who have made outstanding contributions to “engineering research, practice, or education, including, where appropriate, significant contributions to the engineering literature,” and to the “pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of engineering, or developing / implementing innovative approaches to engineering education.”