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TOP SCIENTISTS RECOGNISED
(Health News: 21/8/2002)
Some of Australia's most significant scientific work was recognised this week with the awarding of the prestigious Prime Minister's Prize. http://abc.net.au/science/news/stories/s654481.htm
Top scientists recognised Wednesday, 21 August 2002
Professor Marcela Bilek from Sydney University was awarded the Malcolm McIntosh Prize for her world-class work in the design and fabrication of new materials that have been put to work in leading-edge industrial and bio-medical applications.
"Professor Bilek has made substantial contributions to material science and is internationally recognised for her skills in the fabrication of super-tough thin films and materials," said Federal Science Minister Peter McGauran.
"Since being made the Professor of Applied Physics at the University of Sydney at the age of 32, Professor Bilek's work has led to three new patents in the field in just the last two years."
Professor Bilek works with material from the atoms up. She has become a world leader at stitching together unique materials one atomic layer at a time. She says her work uses a similar approach to the abalone, whose shell is composed of alternating layers of soft and brittle materials that combine to create extraordinary strength.
Her research has created thin film laminates that have highly desirable properties, such as super-tough bio-compatible coatings - ideal for use in bio-medical devices such as artificial hearts. These thin film laminating techniques are also being used to develop filters that will allow solar power systems to capture a greater proportion of the energy in sunlight in useful forms.
Her work on developing extremely hard materials is being used to design high-performance coatings for machine tools. These coatings significantly reduce the need for lubricants, reducing the environmental problems associated with their disposal.
The prize honours the memory and contribution to science by the late Dr Malcolm McIntosh, who was chief executive of CSIRO until his death in 2000. It is awarded to the Physical Scientist of the Year - a researcher 35 years of age or under who has made an outstanding contribution to science and technology. The winner receives $35,000 and a gold medallion.
Prime Minister's Prize
The Prime Minister's Science Prize was awarded to Professor Frank Fenner, whose outstanding career as a virologist has been marked by two achievements of considerable magnitude, namely the eradication of smallpox and the control of Australia's rabbit plague.
He won the prestigious Japan Prize for Applied Science in 1988 for his work with smallpox. He is also famous for injecting himself with myxoma virus to prove it was safe for humans.
The Prime Minister's Science Prize winner receives $300,000 and a gold medallion. It is Australia's premier prize for excellence in science, and highlights the importance of science and innovation to the nation's prosperity.
Professor Fenner retired in 1979, but is currently Visiting Fellow at John Curtin School of Medical Research at the Australian National University. He is now working on a history of the Academy of Science for its jubilee in 2002.
Other winners
Dr Joel Mackay is the winner of the prestigious 2002 $35,000 Minister's Prize for Achievement in the Life Sciences for scientists 35 years of age or younger. Working as an ARC Research Fellow in the Department of Biochemistry, University of Sydney , he is investigating DNA transcription - which triggers genes in any particular cell to become more or less active. His research is trying to determine how this control occurs. The ultimate goal is to cure diseases that result from problems in DNA transcription, such as cancer.
The winner of this year's inaugural Prime Minister's Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Secondary Schools, 72-year-old Mrs Ruth Dircks, is a casual relief teacher at Dungog High School in New South Wales. She has already decided her prize of $35,000 will be donated to the Australian Science Teachers' Association.
The Prize honours teachers who have made an outstanding contribution to science education in Australia, and recognises that excellent science teachers are essential to Australia's scientific and technological future.
Mrs Marianne Nicholas, a teacher with more than 20 years experience who currently teaches a year two/three class at Adelaide's Walkerville Primary School, has won the $35,000 Prime Minister's Prize for Excellence in Science Teaching in Primary Schools.
ABC Science Online
