James Cook Medal

Scientia Professor David Cooper BSc(Med) MBBS(Syd) MD DSc(UNSW) FRACP FRCPA FRCP FAA FAHMS was the winner of the James Cook Medal. Located at UNSW, he is Professor of Medicine and Director, Kirby Institute for Infection and Immunity in Society.

Professor Cooper’s research has been focused on the understanding and treatment of HIV/AIDS. He introduced one of the first tests for HIV infection to Australia and has made a number of contributions and discoveries in areas such as antiretroviral therapy, complications of HIV treatment, and HIV pathogenesis. His current focus is on dose optimisation in immunotherapy and vaccination.

The James Cook Medal is awarded from time to time for outstanding contributions to both science and human welfare in and for the Southern Hemisphere.

Edgeworth David Medal

The Edgeworth David Medal for 2016 was awarded to Dr Muireann Irish. She is a Senior Research Fellow in the School of Psychology, UNSW, a Senior Research Officer, FRONTIER, Neuroscience Research Australia, and an Associate Investigator, Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Cognition and its Disorders, Memory Node.

Dr Irish’s research focuses on memory disruption in dementia, and she is considered to be at the forefront of cognitive neuroscience. Her research contributions include, amongst many, establishing the impairment of planning in dementia patients and differentiation among dementia syndromes at initial presentation. She is also a spokesperson for women in science

The Edgeworth David Medal is awarded each year for distinguished research by a young scientist under the age of 35 years for work done mainly in Australia or for contributing to the advancement of Australian science.

Clarke Medal for Geology​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

This year’s winner of the Clarke Medal was ​Professor Simon P. Turner. He is the Distinguished Professor and Director of Research, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Macquarie University.

As a geochemist, Professor Turner is an active member of the geologic community. His most notable contributions have involved the application of short-lived Uranium-series isotopes to estimate the time scales of magma formation, transport, and differentiation as well as soil production and erosion rates.

The Clarke Medal is awarded each year for distinguished research in the natural sciences conducted in the Australian Commonwealth and its territories. The fields of botany, geology, and zoology are considered in rotation. For 2016, the medal was awarded in Geology.

History and Philosophy of Science Medal​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Emeritus Professor Roy MacLeod received the History and Philosophy of Science Medal for 2016. Professor MacLeod is Emeritus Professor, School of Philosophical and Historical Inquiry, University of Sydney.

Professor MacLeod is an historian of science focusing on the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In the course of his career he has opened new fields of enquiry including: history of British imperial science, history of science in Australasia and the Pacific, Museum studies, and the development of science policy. He also co-founded the international journal Social Studies of Science. A copy of his book “Archibald Liversidge: Imperial Science under the Southern Cross” was presented to the Governor of NSW at the recent celebrations for the 150^th anniversary of Royal patronage of the RSNSW.

The Society’s History and Philosophy of Science Medal is awarded each year to recognize outstanding achievement in the History and Philosophy of Science, with preference being given to the study of ideas, institutions and individuals of significance to the practice of the natural sciences in Australia.

Royal Society of New South Wales Scholarships

Three scholarships of $500 plus a complimentary year of membership of the Society are awarded each year in order to acknowledge outstanding achievements by young researchers in any field of science. Applicants must be enrolled as research students in a university in either NSW or the ACT.This year’s winners were:

Jeremy Chan, PhD Candidate, School of Life Science, Faculty of Science, University of Technology Sydney. Mr. Chan’s research focuses on the impact of maternal smoking on newborn brain injury. His work will provide new insight into how maternal smoking affects the recovery of hypoxic injury in offspring and potential pathways for therapeutic interventions.

Andrew Ritchie, PhD Candidate, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney. Mr Ritchie’s area of research is in the investigation of different evolutionary processes across the natural and social sciences using statistical models of diversification over time. His investigations are intended to improve understanding of the evolution of language and determine new parallels between the evolutionary processes underlying biology and human culture.

Isobel Ronai, PhD Candidate, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney. Ms Ronai’s concerns solving the mystery of altruistic action by sterile worker bee through identifying the gene that regulates worker fertility. Her research has helped to explain worker sterility by focusing on a particular gene pathway.

Walter Burfitt Prize and the Archibald Liversidge Medal

The Walter Burfitt Prize and the Archibald Liversidge Medal for 2016 were awarded to Scientia Professor Justin Gooding FAA FRACI FRSC FISE FRSN. He is an ARC Australian Laureate Fellow and Deputy Head of School of Chemistry, School of Chemistry, UNSW.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

Professor Gooding’s field is surface chemistry. He is a leading authority in the field of surface modification of electrodes, mostly focused on bioelectronics interfaces. He has had a number of pioneering achievements, including understanding electron transfer at surfaces, making silicon compatible with aqueous solutions, advanced electrochemical techniques, and single nanoparticle sensors.

The Walter Burfitt Prize consists of a bronze medal and $150, awarded every three years for research in pure or applied science, deemed to be of the highest scientific merit. The papers and other contributions must have been published during the past six years for research conducted mainly in these countries.

The Archibald Liversidge Medal is awarded at intervals of two years for the purpose of encouragement of research in Chemistry. The prize is awarded in conjunction with the Royal Australia Chemical Institute. It was established under the terms of a bequest to the Society by Professor Archibald Liversidge MA LLD FRS.