The Liversidge Lecture

The Liversidge Lecture has been awarded at intervals of two years for the purpose of encouragement of research in Chemistry.  It was established under the terms of a bequest to the Society by Professor Archibald Liversidge MA LLD FRS, who was the Professor of Chemistry at the University of Sydney from 1874 to 1907 and was one of the Council members who sponsored the Society’s Act of Incorporation in 1881.  Liversidge was the Society’s President three times, in 1885, 1889 and 1900.

Born in England, Liversidge was educated at the Royal College of Chemistry and the Royal School of Mines. In 1872 he joined The University of Sydney as ‘Reader in Geology and Assistant in the Laboratory’, and in 1874 was appointed Professor of Geology and Mineralogy. He later helped to establish the Industrial, Technological and Sanitary Museum, the forerunner of the Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, and was prominent in the establishment of ANZAAS. Liversidge reformed the Society in the 1870s and was responsible for its incorporation. He was Honorary Secretary for many years, designing a new seal incorporating motifs representing the Sections of the Society, symbols of the Colony and broader characteristics of society.

Liversidge Lecture 2022

The Liversidge Lecture for 2022 has been awarded to Professor Timothy W Schmidt FRSN FRACI CChem of the School of Chemistry at UNSW Sydney. Professor Schmidt is internationally recognised as a molecular spectroscopist working on diverse problems from astrophysics to renewable energy. In the gas phase, he has recorded spectra of many hydrocarbon radicals for the first time and discovered new electronic excitations of the dicarbon molecule. In the condensed phase, his work concentrates on triplet-triplet annihilation and singlet fission for solar energy applications. His work has been recognised by a number of prizes including the Broida Prize (International Symposium on Free Radicals 2015), the Coblentz Award (2010), the RACI Physical Chemistry Lectureship and the RACI Physical Chemistry Medal (2021).

Liversidge Lecture 2020

The Liversidge Lecture for 2020 was awarded to Professor Richard Payne FRSN FRACI FRSC of theSchool of Chemistry of the University of Sydney. Professor Payne’s research focusses on the development of technologies for the chemical synthesis of therapeutic peptides and proteins. These technologies have facilitated the preparation of numerous proteins bearing modifications that enhance activity and stability, critical features in the quest to develop efficacious protein therapeutics. His approaches have also been combined with recombinant methods to generate large therapeutic proteins and even antibodies—methods that have been widely adopted in the laboratories of international academics and pharmaceutical companies alike. He has developed synthetic proteins that are amongst the most potent antithrombotic agents ever reported, and which have an enormous therapeutic potential for thrombo- embolic disorders. Professor Payne has been awarded numerous prizes and medals including the 2014 RSNSW Edgeworth David Medal and the H G Smith and A J Birch Medals of the RACI.

Liversidge Lecture 2018

The Liversidge Lecture for 2018 was awarded to Scientia Professor Martina Stenzel FRSN FAA. She is an ARC Future Fellow and co-director of the Centre for Advanced macromolecular Design, School of Chemistry, UNSW. Professor Stenzel, a polymer chemistry, is a leading authority in the field of RAFT polymerisation, and more recently on biomedical applications of polymers. These include drug delivery nanoparticles and anti-cancer applications of nanoparticles. Along with an extensive publication record, she has had a number of significant awards, including the LeFevre Medal from the Australian Academy of Science, a RACI polymer division citation award and, recently, election to the Australian Academy of Science.

List of Recipients of the Liversidge Lecture