Cambridge academics recognised by The Royal Society

The awards are in recognition of the scientists' achievements in a wide variety of fields of research - the uniting factor is the excellence of their work and the profound implications their findings have had for others in their relevant fields. 

Two Cambridge scientists have been awarded Royal Medals, Professors Ron Laskey FRS and Christopher Dobson FRS. Professor Laskey holds the Charles Darwin Chair in the Department of Zoology and is the Joint Director of the MRC Cancer Cell Unit. Professor Christopher Dobson is the John Humphrey Plummer Professor of Chemical and Structural Biology in the Department of Chemistry and the Master of St John's College. His research interests are primarily focused on the investigation of the structures and properties of biological molecules, especially proteins, and their relationship to biological evolution and disease. 

Professor Ashok Venkitaraman, Joint Director of the MRC Cancer Cell Unit with Professor Laskey, said: “Ron Laskey’s work has over the years has provided a foundation for many topical and important fields in biomedical research, ranging from nuclear transfer and embryo cloning, to mammalian DNA replication. The way in which he has translated his fundamental research on DNA replication to the development of important new tools for the early diagnosis of human cancers is a lesson in how biological knowledge can be used to benefit human health. He has mentored and nurtured the careers of many younger colleagues. I am delighted that Ron's outstanding contributions to the biomedical sciences have been recognised by the Royal Society.”

Also among those honoured this year is Professor Jeremy Sanders FRS, Head of the School of Physical Sciences and Fellow of Selwyn College. He receives the Davy Medal for his pioneering contributions to several fields, most recently to the field of dynamic combinatorial chemistry at the forefront of supramolecular chemistry.

This medal is awarded annually for an outstandingly important recent discovery in chemistry. When first awarded in 1877, the medal was jointly awarded to Robert Bunsen and Gustav Kirchhoff for their research and discoveries in spectrum analysis.
 

Also included in this year’s recipients is Professor David MacKay FRS, Professor of Natural Philosophy at the Department of Physics, who will give the Clifford Paterson Lecture. Professor MacKay used his expertise in information theory to design a widely-used interface called "dasher" that allows disabled people to write efficiently using a single finger or head-mounted pointer. He is also author of the critically acclaimed book, “Sustainable Energy – without the hot air”, which sets out the various low-carbon energy options open to society.

Dr Jason Chin, Group Leader at the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology (MRC-LMB) and a Fellow at Trinity College, will give the Francis Crick Lecture.

Additionally, Sir Martin Evans FRS, formerly of the University of Cambridge, has been awarded the Royal Society’s Copley medal, the world’s oldest prize for scientific achievement, for his seminal work on embryonic stem cells in mice, which revolutionised the field of genetics.  Sir Martin, Director of the School of Biosciences and Professor of Mammalian Genetics at Cardiff University, was one of three winners of the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 2007. He received the honour for “a series of ground-breaking discoveries concerning embryonic stem cells and DNA recombination in mammals.”