Winner, Winner, HHMI Chicken Dinner

The Howard Hughes Medical Institute's new International Early Career Scientist awards have been granted to 28 researchers from outside the US, reports ScienceInsider's Jocelyn Kaiser. The $20 million program, which was created in December 2010, is meant to help young researchers abroad establish labs. "The institute invited applications from scientists in 18 countries with an infrastructure to support strong science but inadequate research funding. Applicants must have done graduate or postdoctoral work in the United States and started a lab within the last 7 years," Kaiser says. HHMI President Robert Tijan tells Kaiser that HHMI wants to support science across the globe, and also to keep up the "influx of really talented students" that come to the US. HHMI received 760 applications, and invited 55 researchers to present their work at HHMI's Virginia campus in the fall. The winners' fields range from plant sciences to virology, Kaiser adds. Seven are from China — the most from one country — and one-third are women. "The researchers will each receive $100,000 a year for 5 years and $150,000 to equip their labs," Kaiser says. "They will also attend meetings with the 300-some HHMI investigators in the United States. After 5 years, they can apply to renew the awards."