UC Irvine News Brief: James Hicks garners honorary degree, lectureship

UCI Associate Vice Chancellor for Research James Hicks will receive an honorary degree from Aarhus University in Denmark this fall. The professor of ecology & evolutionary biology is best known for his work on the evolution of alligators and their cardiovascular systems. He has spent significant time at Aarhus conducting seminars and helping faculty evaluate dissertation oral arguments, among other efforts. Hicks said he had no idea that he’d been nominated by science professors there for the honor. “I was completely blown away and surprised,” he said. “I did not anticipate it at all.” UCI Vice Chancellor for Research John Hemminger said: “This very prestigious international recognition of Professor Hicks is highly deserved. Jim is a rare breed: an internationally recognized researcher who at the same time has been able to provide outstanding high-level administrative oversight.” Separately, Hicks has been selected to deliver the August Krogh Distinguished Lecture for the American Physiological Society on April 24 in San Diego. The title of the talk is “Tales from the Heart: A Comparative & Evolutionary Perspective of the Vertebrate Circulatory System.”