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SCIENCE ACADEMY ELECTS NEW MEMBERS
24 March 2005

Sixteen of Australia's leading scientists were honoured on 24 March by election to the Australian Academy of Science.

Election to the Academy recognises a career that has significantly advanced, and continues to advance, the world's scientific knowledge.  Scientific contributions of the new Fellows cover a wide range of specialities that include medical innovations, nanosystems, computer vision, disease resistant plants and atmospheric processes.  The sixteen new Fellows, elected in 2005 from Australian universities, CSIRO and medical research institutions, are:

Professor Samuel Frank Berkovic FRACP
Professor, Epilepsy Research Centre, Department of Medicine, University of Melbourne, Austin Health, Heidelberg, Victoria
Telephone:  03 9496 2330
Email:  s.berkovic@unimelb.edu.au
Website:  www.brain.org.au/epilepsyresearch/staff/profiles/s_berkovic.html
Field:  Epilepsy; gene mutations associated with previously unexplained epilepsies.  His research has led to a revolutionary change in basic research into epilepsy, resulting in radical changes in the clinical management of familial forms of epilepsy and new insights into their underlying biology.

Professor Michael George Eastwood
Professor, Department of Mathematics, University of Adelaide
Telephone:  08 8303 3035
Email:  meastwood@maths.adelaide.edu.au
Website: www.maths.adelaide.edu.au/pure/staff/meastwood.html
Field:  Differential geometry; twistor theory; representation theory; integral, CR, affine and algebraic geometry; mathematical physics; and invariant theory.  He is well known for his work on the construction of invariant differential operators.

Dr Jeffrey Graham Ellis
Research Scientist and Program Leader, Genetic Engineering for Plant Improvement, Plant Industry, CSIRO Plant Industry, Canberra
Telephone:  02 6246 5421
Email:  jeff.ellis@csiro.au
Website: www.csiro.au/index.asp?type=resume&id=EllisJeff&stylesheet=aboutCSIROResume
Field:  Plant molecular biology and disease resistant genes, cloning the first plant rust resistance gene from flax.  He has played an important role in the understanding of the agrobacterial transformation of plants.

Dr Jorgen Segerlund Frederiksen
Chief Research Scientist, CSIRO Atmospheric Research, Aspendale, Victoria
Telephone:  03 9239 4683
Email:  Jorgen.Frederiksen@csiro.au
Website: tpsrv.anu.edu.au/people/frederiksen
Field:  Atmospheric processes; the structure of storm tracks, blocking, teleconnection patterns, the Madden-Julian oscillation, and equatorial waves.   He has pioneered many of the theories currently used for climate simulations and weather prediction.

Professor Franz Grieser
Professor of Chemistry, School of Chemistry, University of Melbourne
Telephone:  03 8344 6476
Email:  franz@unimelb.edu.au
Website: www.chemistry.unimelb.edu.au/people/grieser.html and www.austehc.unimelb.edu.au/umfs/biogs/UMFS040b.htm
Field:  Physical Chemistry; free radical chemistry, spectroscopy, colloid and surface science, and sonochemistry.  He has established creative links that cross conventional boundaries to solve key questions in surfactant science and sonochemistry, generating novel applications for companies.

Professor Ruth Milne Hall
NHMRC Senior Principal Research Fellow, School of Molecular and Microbial Biosciences, University of Sydney
Telephone:  02 9351 3465
Email:  ruth.hall@mmb.usyd.edu.au
Field:  Microbiology and genetics; antibiotic resistance genes, gene cassettes.  She has discovered a novel system for gene mobilisation that is not only critical for the disseminate of antibiotic resistance genes but also a major generator of diversity in bacteria.

Professor Timothy Mark Harrison
Director, Research School of Earth Sciences, Australian National University, Canberra
Telephone:  02 6125 2487
Email:  mark.harrison@anu.edu.au
Website:  shrimp.anu.edu.au/people/tmh/tmh.html
Field:  Thermochronometry; Earth history.  He has developed analytical methods and interpretive models leading to a paradigm shift in our view of the evolution of the Himalayan mountain range and the earliest phase of Earth history.

Professor Richard Ian Hartley
Professor, Department of Information Engineering, Research School of Information Science and Engineering, Australian National University, Canberra
Telephone:  02 6125 8668
Email:  richard.hartley@anu.edu.au
Website: users.rsise.anu.edu.au/~hartley/
Field:  Computer vision; low dimension topology and Knot theory; Computer-aided design of VLSI (Very Large Scale Integration ) systems.  He developed the application  of projective geometry to the analysis of image sequence that initiated a new area of research into computer vision.

Dr Robin Holliday FRS
West Pennant Hills, New South Wales
Telephone:  02 9873 3476
Email:  randl.holliday@bigpond.com
Field:  Molecular genetics, epigenetics and cell biology.  The 'Holliday Structure' is now accepted as integral to the process of genetic recombination.  His pioneering work in epigenetics and the role of DNA methylation has led to advances in our understanding of the importance of the epigenetic control of development.

Professor Stephen Timothy Hyde
Professor of Physics, Department of Applied Mathematics, Research School of Physical Sciences and Engineering, Australian National University, Canberra
Telephone:  02 6125 4553
Email:  stephen.hyde@anu.edu.au
Website:  wwwrsphysse.anu.edu.au/~sth110/sth.html
Field:  Theoretical Physics; self-assembly of complex molecular structures; nanoscience.  He pioneered the application of non-Euclidean geometry to two-dimensional problems of membranes and crystal development.

Professor Chennupati Jagadish
Federation Fellow and Professor, Department of Electronic Materials Engineering, Research School of Physical Sciences and Engineering, Australian National University, Canberra
Telephone:  02 6125 0363
Email:  c.jagadish@IEEE.org
Website:  wwwrsphysse.anu.edu.au/eme/profile.php/7
Field:  Semiconductor optoelectronics.  His pioneering research has led to innovative quantum well, quantum wire, and quantum dot lasers.  His achievments include record breaking device performance using new structures produced by metal organic chemical vapour deposition.

Professor Trevor David Lamb FRS
ARC Federation Fellow, Division of Neuroscience, John Curtin School of Medical Research, Australian National University, Canberra
Telephone:  02 6125 8929
Email:  trevor.lamb@anu.edu.au
Website:  jcsmr.anu.edu.au/org/dns/visual/index.php
Field:  Retinal photoreceptors.  He invented a method for recording electrically from isolated photoreceptor cells and has developed mathematical descriptions for activation, light and dark adaptation, and retinoid recycling.

Professor Geoffrey Ian McFadden
Professor, School of Botany, University of Melbourne
Telephone:  03 9347 1071  
Email: gim@unimelb.edu.au
Website:  homepage.mac.com/fad1/McFaddenLab.html
Field:  Malaria; eukaryotic organelles.  His research has shown that the malaria parasite contains a relic chloroplast indicating that it evolved from a parasitic alga.  This has enabled him to pioneer a novel approach to combating malaria.

Professor Amnon Neeman
Professor, Centre for Mathematics and its Applications, Australian National University, Canberra
Telephone:  02 6125 0795
Email:  amnon.neeman@anu.edu.au
Website:  wwwmaths.anu.edu.au/~neeman/
Field:  Algebraic geometry, topology and K-theory.  His research has made notable contributions to a variety of mathematical problems including the study of solution sets of polynomial equations, a subject which has its roots in antiquity.

Professor Hugh Philip Possingham
Professor and Director, The Ecology Centre, University of Queensland, Brisbane
Telephone:  07 3365 9766
Email:  hpossingham@zen.uq.edu.au
Website: www.ecology.uq.edu.au/index.html?page=20910&pid=
Field:  Mathematical and applied theoretical ecology.  His seminal contributions have underpinned advances in marine conservation planning.  He is leading the emerging field of applied theoretical ecology.

Professor John Ralston
Director and Professor of Physical Chemistry and Minerals Processing, Ian Wark Research Institute, University of South Australia
Telephone:  08 8302 3066
Email:  john.ralston@unisa.edu.au
Website: www.unisa.edu.au/iwri/staffpages/johnralston.asp and www.unisanet.unisa.edu.au/staff/Homepage.asp?Name=John.Ralston
Field:  Physical chemistry; colloid and surface chemistry including mineral flotation processes, surface chemistry of metal sulphides and the static and dynamic wetting behaviour of solid surfaces.  He established the Ian Wark Research Institute, which is now known worldwide for its fundamental research in interfaces.