Two Rice seniors named Marshall Scholars

Rice seniors Anthony Austin and Jingyuan Luo are among the 40 students across the nation who were named Marshall Scholars this year.

The Marshall Scholarship, founded by an Act of Parliament in 1953 to commemorate the humane ideals of the Marshall Plan, allows intellectually distinguished American students to pursue two years of graduate study at any institution in the United Kingdom.

	ANTHONY AUSTIN		JINGYUAN LUO

Austin, a member of Will Rice College, will use the scholarship to complete a Master of Advanced Study degree in Part III of the Mathematics Tripos at Cambridge University and a Master of Science in pure mathematics at Imperial College London.

“The Marshall Commission has graciously granted me a rare opportunity to undertake some of the most challenging mathematics courses in the world at the U.K.’s best universities, which attract people from around the globe to study there,” Austin said. “I am most looking forward to doing a lot of good math and meeting a lot of interesting people.”

Austin said the opportunity to study abroad will give him a chance to appreciate the U.K.’s culture and history. “I’ve always had an interest in the history of World War II and will now have the opportunity to travel to some of the places most impacted by it,” he said. “There is also a lot of good mathematical history to be enjoyed as well. After all, Cambridge has been home to some of the world’s most brilliant scientists and mathematicians, from Isaac Newton to G.H. Hardy. Getting to experience this connection to the past will be a treat.”

Ultimately Austin intends to pursue a Ph.D. in mathematics and to become a university professor.

“Teaching appeals to me because it affords me the chance to make a direct, personal impact on the lives of those whom I instruct,” Austin said. “Aside from my family members, the people who have had the most profound influence on my development both personally and as a student have been my teachers, especially my calculus instructor from high school and several of the professors here. These hard-working, passionate individuals have been a constant font of inspiration for me throughout my career. My wish in becoming a teacher is that someday I might be able to do for someone else what they have done for me. To be allowed to give back to the world in such a way would be more than I could ever hope to deserve.”

At Rice, Austin is working on dual degrees in electrical engineering and mathematics. He is currently part of an undergraduate engineering design team working on an unmanned aerial vehicle to Mars.

Austin received the Outstanding Junior Award in electrical engineering and the Hubert E. Bray Prize in mathematics. As a Century Scholar at Rice, he has conducted research with faculty members Mark Embree and Steve Cox in the Department of Computational and Applied Mathematics.

Luo, a member of Sid Richardson College, will use the Marshall Scholarship to complete a Master of Science degree in biomedicine, bioscience and society at the London School of Economics and Political Science and a Master of Research in stem cell biology at Imperial College London.

“The biomedicine, bioscience and society master’s degree is unique in that it addresses the regulatory, ethical and societal implications of emerging biotechnologies,” Luo said. “I am excited about expanding my knowledge of the legal issues involved in biotechnology and learning more about bioethics.”

Luo said she is very eager to explore London, where she plans to get involved with the science policy community. She hopes to spend some of her free time enjoying ballet performances at the famed Royal Opera House.

After Luo completes her degrees in London, she will be considering law school or a Ph.D. in the biological sciences. At some point in her career, she wants to communicate the importance of scientific research to policymakers and the public.

At Rice, Luo is pursuing dual degrees in biochemistry and cell biology and in policy studies. Also a Century Scholar, Luo has conducted biological research with former Assistant Professor Mary Ellen Lane in the Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology and is currently researching stem cell policy with Kirstin Matthews, a fellow in science and technology policy at Rice’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.

Luo has interned at the National Science Foundation in Washington, D.C., and at the Institut fran