Scientific American names Al Gore "Policy Leader Of The Year"

2006 Scientific American 50 Recognizes Research, Business and Policy Contributions to Science and Technology With Special Promise for Society
List in Forthcoming December Issue Spotlights Advances in Alzheimer's, Stem Cell Research and Other Critical Fields

(PRNewswire) - A visually impaired artist and poet who developed an artificial retina; developers of engineered blood vessels that have been successfully implanted into patients; former Vice President and environmentalist Al Gore; philanthropist-billionaires Warren Buffett and Paul Allen -- all are among a varied array of research, business and policy achievers recognized by the 2006 Scientific American 50. The list is selected by the Board of Editors of Scientific American, the nation's premier science magazine.

The former Vice President, along with MIT nanotech pioneer Angela Belcher and the environmentally-minded insurance firm Swiss Re, take Scientific American 50's three top distinctions -- Policy Leader, Research Leader and Business Leader of the Year.

In addition to recognizing a Research, Business and Policy Leader of the Year, the list also spotlights research, business and policy leaders in fields ranging from Alzheimer's research to nanotechnology.

The Scientific American 50 list appears in the December issue of Scientific American magazine, hitting newsstands on November 21. It may also be accessed on Scientific American's web site at http://www.sciam.com/ starting November 13.

"The Scientific American 50 recognizes contributions to science and technology from individuals and organizations, researchers, business and policy-makers -- scientists and non-scientists alike," said Scientific American editor in chief John Rennie. "Not only are their achievements facilitating advances in science and technology, they also have broader significance for us as a society."

SA 50 honorees also include Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who put up $100 million to establish the Allen Institute for Brain Science; visually impaired MIT researcher, poet and artist Elizabeth Goldring, who has developed a prosthetic retina that has worked successfully in recent trials; investor Warren Buffett, who is giving away 85 percent of his wealth to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to further its work advancing global healthcare and attacking poverty.