UNLV’s most distinguished research award — the Harry Reid Silver State Research Award — was created in 2001 with two goals in mind: honoring the U.S. senator who has been an outstanding supporter of UNLV, and recognizing faculty who have performed research that is both highly regarded and responsive to the needs of the community and state. In this series, Fusion profiles the first three recipients of this honor — Robert Boehm, Stanley Smith, and Hal Rothman — who represent the exceptional research and scholarship being performed at UNLV.