Three U of M researchers get 'genius grants'

ANN ARBOR (AP) -- Three researchers from the University of Michigan are among the latest 22 recipients of the no-strings-attached MacArthur Foundation "genius grants." The $500,000 fellowships for 2011 were announced Tuesday by the Chicago-based John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. University of Michigan researchers on the list include Tiya Miles, Melanie Sanford and Yukiko Yamashita. Miles is director of the Department of Afroamerican & African Studies in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts. Sanford is a College of LSA professor. And Yamashita is an assistant professor at the Life Sciences Institute and an assistant professor at Michigan's medical school. Recipients can spend the money however they like, but many say the honor makes them focus on what they would accomplish in their fields. Published: Wed, Sep 21, 2011