In the 1930s research on campus burgeoned in nuclear physics, chemistry, and biology, leading to the development of the first cyclotron by Ernest O. Lawrence, the isolation of the human polio virus, and the discovery of a string of elements heavier than uranium. Twenty members of the Berkeley faculty have been awarded Nobel Prizes for these and subsequent discoveries, as well as in literature and economics, for liberal arts kept pace with physical sciences. In 1966 Berkeley was recognized by the American Council on Education as "the best balanced distinguished university in the country." [http://www.berkeley.edu/about/history/]
== Academic Excellence ==
UC Berkeley is noted for academic excellence, earning a rank of 21 on US News and World Report's list of college and university rankings. [http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/college/rankings/brief/t1natudoc_brief.php] and it is also one of the nation's most selective universities. [http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/usnews/edu/college/directory/brief/drglance_1312_brief.php]
== Colleges ==