Jun 2, 2023
2 min
Barbara Shinn-Cunningham, the director of Carnegie Mellon University’s Neuroscience Institute and the George A. and Helen Dunham Cowan Professor of Auditory Neuroscience, has been named president-elect of the Acoustical Society of America (ASA) which promotes the knowledge and practical application of the field of acoustics.
Known for her work in auditory attention, Shinn-Cunningham has been involved with ASA for most of her career.
"The Acoustical Society is the scientific society in which I grew up," she said. "All of my advisers and mentors came through ASA. I have very deep roots here and am proud to help lead."
Shinn-Cunningham has served as vice president of ASA and as a member of its executive council. She is also a fellow of the society and received a silver medal from the society in 2019 for her work in the cognitive and neural bases of speech perception in complex acoustic environments.
She said she is excited to champion its recent diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.
"I'm so excited to work with VP-elect Tyrone Porter to bring more people into the society. We want to ensure everyone is supported, encouraged and given opportunities to succeed," Shinn-Cunningham said.
ASA was established in 1929 and has approximately 6,000 members.
Shinn-Cunningham gave her first scientific presentation and learned a valuable lesson at an ASA conference.
"I was a second-year master's student and I was so terrified I barely got through my presentation. After my talk, someone asked me a question that absolutely stumped me. It was a long question about if I had considered certain niche papers," Shinn-Cunningham said. "My mentor, Nat Durlach, was sitting in the front row. He looked me in the eye, mouthed 'No!' and shook his head. I took his cue and said, 'No, next question.' Everyone loved it, and that’s still the advice I give to my own mentees. Just be honest, especially if you don't know something!"
Shinn-Cunningham will serve as president-elect for the 2023-24 term.
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Earlier this month, alarm bells were ringing at the Justice Department after a Jordanian citizen was arrested for targeting and breaking into solar power facility farm in Florida. During that same time period, energy facilities in New Jersey and Idaho also came under attack. The attacks were politically motivated and have led national media outlets like USA Today to contact experts from Carnegie Mellon University to help explain the situation and break if all down. The Department of Homeland Security has issued warnings that domestic extremists have been developing "credible, specific plans" since at least 2020 and would continue to "encourage physical attacks against electrical infrastructure." Industry experts, federal officials, and others have warned in one report after another since at least 1990 that the power grid was at risk, said Granger Morgan, an engineering professor at Carnegie Mellon University. One challenge is that there's no single entity whose responsibilities span the entire system, Morgan said. And the risks are only increasing as the grid expands to include renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, he said. August 15, 2024 - USA TODAY Professor Granger's comments are startling as America's vulnerabilities to important infrastructure seem to be more exposed than ever. And if you're a journalist looking to cover this emerging topic - then let us help with your questions and stories. Morgan Granger is available to speak with media - simply click on his icon below to arrange an interview today. Photo Credit: Zbynek Burival
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