La Salle University Honors Two Alums Who Have Made
Significant Contributions to Science

At its Fall Honors Convocation, La Salle University honored two alumni who have made significant contributions to science: J. Patrick Henry, Ph.D., in astronomy, and Naomi J. Halas, Ph.D., in nanotechnology. 

Halas, a professor at Rice University, has pioneered the use of opticals in nanotechnology, which has implications for treating cancer, and holds 11 patents. Henry, a professor at the University of Hawaii, has contributed greatly to understanding the evolution of the universe. 

In granting the degree to Halas, Br. Michael J. McGinniss, F.S.C., President of La Salle, said, “Your work has been recognized by the federal government, industry, academia, professional societies, publications, and women’s organizations, among others. Today, it is La Salle’s turn to honor you.  It is important to note that we honor you also for the ‘spiritual barometer,’ as you call it, which guides your life, for your belief in putting a human face on engineering, and for your devotion to your students. For all of these reasons, I am pleased to confer upon you the degree Doctor of Science, Honoris Causa.” 

For Henry, Br. McGinniss said, “For more than three decades, you have devoted yourself to the quest for scientific knowledge applied to solving the major mysteries of the universe. The accolades that you have received from your peers testify to the significance of your contributions. Today, your alma mater is proud to join the ranks of those who honor your work. We hope that our students will be inspired by your enthusiasm and accomplishments. Some, like you, may reach for the stars literally—others, figuratively. In appreciation of your work and example, I am pleased to confer upon you the degree Doctor of Science, Honoris Causa.” 

Using her background in chemistry and physics and working with light, Hallas invented nanoshells, miniscule particles of glass encased in gold, which can be adapted by light. By injecting nanoshells into the veins of cancerous mice, she and colleagues found that the nanoshells naturally clustered in the tumors, and when a laser is beamed at the nanoshells, they heated up and destroyed the tumor without harm to the surrounding tissue. Testing has moved on to larger animals, with the ultimate goal of taking the technique to clinical trials. 

This past year, Halas was named a Fellow of The International Society for Optical Engineering. In 2006, Esquire magazine named her one of America’s “Best and Brightest”; and in 2003, she was honored with the Breast Cancer Research Program Innovator Award. 

Henry is internationally renowned for his work in cosmology, the study of the evolution of the universe. He made the first observations of clusters of galaxies at cosmological distances. He received a NASA Group Achievement Award for X-ray astronomy calibration and was a member of the Einstein Observatory Guest Investigator Review Committee. 

At the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawaii, Henry’s work focuses on cosmology, observational studies of quasars and clusters of galaxies, and X-ray astronomy. In 2003, he received a Senior Research Award from the Humboldt Foundation of Germany in honor of his lifelong academic achievements. More recently, he served on the International Science Working Group for the Japanese Space Agency’s Suzaku satellite, which was launched in 2005. 

He is currently researching what scientists call the “dark matter problem” and the “dark energy problem’ -- the major questions in our understanding of the universe.  

A 1969 graduate of La Salle, Henry said he always wanted to pursue a career in science. 

“I was always interested in the space program and that is the kind of astronomy I do,” he said.  

He cited several members of the La Salle physics faculty who were influential, including Bert Streib, Mark Guttmann and Joe Simmons.  

“My physics class had keys to the physics professors' offices, and we had a tightly knit physics club,” he recalled. “I also remember rewriting a paper about five times for Brother Patrick Ellis in the Honors Program, and each time he would correct my English. I date my learning how to write from that experience.” (Br. Ellis recalled that experience and said Henry never minded doing the additional drafts.) 

Halas, too, wanted to be a scientist from an early age. 

“I always loved science and nature, and as a kid I liked to take everything apart, which is typically a sign of an engineer,” she recalled. “I didn’t ‘switch’ into science until I was half through my undergraduate degree in music at another institution!” 

As for her career path, from chemistry to engineering, Halas said, “In science one finds the types of problems they are most interested in to work on. A strong and general science background gives you the fundamentals, but it also enables you to teach yourself new things. Most active researchers in science are learning new things all the time: doing research is a paradigm for ‘lifelong learning’.” 

Halas, a 1980 graduate of La Salle, said, “Several professors were very important in my undergraduate experience at La Salle, most prominently the faculty of the Chemistry Department. Additionally I had a few instructors, two women in fact, Patricia Langenberg in mathematics and Joanne Ciulla in philosophy, who were very influential and served as female role models.” 

Also at convocation, the University presented its Faculty Scholarship Award to Geffrey Kelly, Ph.D., a professor of religion at La Salle and Dean’s List students were recognized.