Recognition for our world changers
Fellowship for climate change researcher
The director of our Centre for Sustainable Solutions has been made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. Jaime Toney, Professor in Environmental and Climate Science at the School of Geographical & Earth Sciences, is an organic geochemist whose work aims to develop our understanding of how the Earth has responded to climate change in the past and how continued global warming might affect the planet’s future. Her nomination for the Fellowship recognises the impact of her work in co-founding and directing the Centre for Sustainable Solutions. The centre, which opened in April 2020, aims to help individuals, communities and organisations to act towards a sustainable future through education, research and partnership.
• Centre for Sustainable Solutions
International award for gravitational wave researcher
An expert in gravitational wave data analysis and the astrophysics of black holes has been recognised with an international award. Dr Christopher Berry, a lecturer in the School of Physics & Astronomy and a research professor at Northwestern University’s CIERA, has been named as this year’s recipient of a Young Scientist Prize from the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP). Dr Berry’s award citation states that he was selected “for key contributions to gravitational wave discoveries, mentoring and leadership to support the research community, and effective public outreach.”
Gravitational wave astronomy is a new form of astronomy which enables us to study the mergers of massive objects like neutron stars and black holes. Gravitational waves are ripples in spacetime first predicted by Einstein in 1916. Due to their miniscule effects on Earth, they are extremely difficult to detect, and the first observation was made in 2015 by the Advanced LIGO detectors.
Royal Society research professorship for leading physicist
Professor Miles Padgett, of the School of Physics & Astronomy, has been made a Royal Society Research Professor. Royal Society Professorships provide up to ten years of support for internationally recognised scientists. The award will enable Professor Padgett to advance research in quantum science and optical imaging. An example of one of these new imaging systems is an ultrathin endoscope which is the width of a single strand of human hair. Professor Padgett’s team aspires to create a new generation of endoscopes that can produce 3D images. The application of this technological development in, for example, medical imaging would be transformational.