2002 Annual Report Of The Royal Society of New Zealand

Incorporating the 2002 Academy Council Yearbook

Academy Activities

Fellowship Selection

The confirmed panels in 2002 were:

Animal Sciences
Behavioural and Human Sciences
Biochemical and Molecular Biological Sciences
Chemical Sciences
Earth Sciences
Engineering
Mathematical and Information Sciences
Medical and Health Sciences
Physical Sciences
Plant Sciences
Social Sciences

All panels had five members covering both pure and applied science and panels were required to consider equally nominations in pure and applied science.

In 2002, the Academy Council again set up a President's Panel to consider nominations which did not fit into any of the traditional panels. The Panel consisted of Professor Paul Callaghan; Professor Carolyn Burns, and Dr Stuart Corson. This panel considered 33 nominations and referred six to the Fellowship Selection Committee. The President's Panel, on which Dr Stuart Corson was replaced by Professor Joyce Waters, considered nominations of 17 women scientists who were also considered by the traditional panels. The President's Panel unanimously agreed to refer seven names of women scientists to the Fellowship Selection Committee.

Calls for nominations for Fellowship continue to be widely distributed. Nominations were sought from all areas of science and technology and those nominating were asked to consider candidates in government or industry-based research organisations and the private sector as well as Crown Research Institutes and universities.

In 2002 there were 109 nominations, including 17 women scientists and 28 new nominations. The breakdown of nominations was:

Animal Sciences(6)
Behavioural and Human Sciences(3)
Biochemical and Molecular Biological Sciences(12)
Chemical Sciences(10)
Earth Sciences(17)
Engineering(7)
Mathematical and Information Sciences(7)
Medical and Health Sciences(13)
Physical Sciences(5)
Plant Sciences(15)
Social Sciences(14)

Nominations for Fellowship remain eligible for election for five years.

The Fellowship Selection Committee, which is an expanded Council to ensure that all areas of science and technology are appropriately represented, considered 38 nominations forwarded from the various panels.

At the 2001 Fellows' Annual General Meeting it was resolved that up to 15 Fellows be elected in 2002, and 14 were elected.

Honorary Fellowship

Fellowship Selection Panels are required to assess nominations for Honorary Fellowship in a similar way to Fellowship of the Royal Society of New Zealand. In 2002 there were three nominations; the criteria are similar to those for Fellowship. Consideration must be given to each candidate's sustained research excellence in the particular scientific or technological field and to the candidate's association with New Zealand. The Academy Council considered the recommendations at its meeting in October and three Honorary Fellows were announced at the Fellows' Annual General Meeting in November 2002.

Fellows' Book

The Academy Council introduced a leather-bound Fellows' book in 2002 with the aim of getting as many Fellows as possible to sign the book. Consequently the book was taken to various functions around the country and any Fellows present signed the book. The names of all deceased Fellows, and the names of all Honorary Fellows, have been enscribed beautifully into the book by a local calligrapher.

Academy Business Plan

The Academy has continued to focus its activities in line with its objectives to:

recognise, support and encourage outstanding achievement and to foster excellence in fields of science and technology;
provide independent and non-partisan science and technology advice to the Society's Council, Government and to the wider community;
assist and support the activities of the Royal Society of New Zealand.

Finance

The Academy Council has established a Trust as a Royal Society designated fund into which non-specific donations to the Academy are placed. The Council gratefully acknowledges the donations made by Fellows and Honorary Fellows to the Academy's activities.

Functions

In March 2002, Robert Lord May, the President of the Royal Society (London), presented the 2001 Rutherford Medal to Professor Peter Gluckman CNZM FRSNZ at a ceremony at Old Government House in Auckland. In November 2002, the Hon Pete Hodgson presented the 2002 Rutherford Medal to Professor Jeffrey Tallon FRSNZ at a function at Te Papa in Wellington.

Fellowship certificates were presented during the year at various ceremonies around the country.

The following medals and awards were also presented during the year:

The 2001 Hector Medal in Chemical Sciences was awarded to Professor Peter Schwerdtfeger FRSNZ for his outstanding research in theoretical chemistry.
The 2001 Te Rangi Hiroa Medal for historical approaches to societal transformation and change was awarded to Professor Erik Olssen FRSNZ for his outstanding research on the issue of social change and the wide range of factorsideology, family formation, social values and the nature of workwhich affect the course of change.
The 2001 T. K. Sidey Medal for outstanding scientific research concerning electromagnetic radiation was awarded to Dr Richard Blaikie for excellence in electromagnetic simulations of evanescent near-field lithography; and to Professor Robin Clark FRS Hon FRSNZ for exceptional contributions to optical spectroscopy and to inorganic structures. Professor Clark's medal was presented to him in London in May by the New Zealand High Commissioner, The Hon Russell Marshall.
The 2001 Hamilton Memorial Prize for the encouragement of beginners in scientific or technological research in New Zealand was awarded to Dr Ralph Bungard who has made a significant contribution in the field of nitrogen fixation.
The 2001 Hatherton Award for the best scientific paper by a student registered for the degree of PhD at any New Zealand university published or accepted for publication either during their studies or within a year of the receipt of the PhD degree in physical sciences, earth sciences and mathematical and information sciences was awarded to Dr Paul Shorten for his paper on biomathematics. It investigates the mathematics of hormone transport a "perifusion system"an experimental tool used to model information transfer in endocrine systems, and shows how experimental data obtained should be understood.
The 2001 Charles Fleming Award for environmental achievement was awarded to Professor John Craig for a lifetime of achievement in environmental conservation and environmental restoration, and for his outstanding contribution to education and to the promotion of public understanding and awareness of environmental issues.

"B2B2B: Bio-science to bio-enterprise to bio-business"

The report from the successful conference held in Hamilton in November 2001 was published in May 2002.

2002 Academy conference

The Academy conference this year was held jointly with Te Papa and the Stout Research Centre for New Zealand Studies. Entitled "Being human: science, culture and fear", the conference was held in the Soundings Theatre, Te Papa, on Friday, 22 November.

The key themes of the conference were:

1. The science of culture: how much do we learn about human culture from the scientific investigation of human evolution?

2. Science and Mätauranga Mäori: what are the points of contact and divergence between science and traditional knowledge systems?

3. Anxiety about genetic modification: what is the nature and cause of contemporary and historical anxiety about 'playing god'?

4. Forensics in the courtroom: how able are we to understand advanced forensic information, including DNA?

5. The culture of science: is human culture biologically driven?

The conference was well attended and very successful.

Charles Fleming Lecture

Professor John Craig completed his Charles Fleming Lecture Tour for 2002. The titles of his lectures were: "Sustainable management of New Zealand biodiversity" and "Science and sustainability: leadership or specialist isolation"

Professor Craig spoke at Royal Society Branches in Wellington, Nelson, Canterbury (Christchurch), Hawke's Bay (Napier), Manawatu (Palmerston North), Rotorua, and Auckland Museum Institute. He also gave talks at MoRST, DoC and Massey University.

The lecture tour was very successful, with excellent turn-outs at all venues.

Council elections

At the Council Elections at the Fellows' Annual General Meeting in November 2002, Professors Jim Coxon and David Elms both completed terms on Council. The nominations of Professor Elms, who agreed to stand for a second term, and Professor Anne Smith from the University of Otago were accepted to fill the two vacant positions. Both were elected onto the Academy Council for 4-year terms.

International science

The Royal Society, on behalf of New Zealand science and technology, adheres to the International Council for Science (ICSU) and 27 other non-governmental science and technology organisations. Fellows continue to be closely involved with ICSU and related activities.

Fellows' Contribution to Society activity

Many Fellows continue to actively contribute to Royal Society of New Zealand science and technology activities through:

Fellowship Selection Panels and Fellowship Selection Committee;
Selection Committees for Academy Medals/Awards;
James Cook Research Fellowship Assessment Panels and Selection Committee;
Marsden Assessment Panels and Council;
Convenorship of standing and ad hoc RSNZ committees;
Preparation of scientific reports;
Assistance with science education projects;
Review of scientific, technological and science education reports published by the Society;
Membership, via the Society, of Government and non-Government advisory committees;
Provision of expert advice sought informally.

Thank you to all who contribute to these activities; collectively they provide a major input to the work of the Society and the science and technology advice given to Government and other agencies.

President's activities

In addition to the activities mentioned earlier in this report, the President has been active during the year in the following science and technology activities:

In January he served as an ex officio member on the James Cook Selection Committee which chose the 2002 awardees.
In February he attended a dinner to mark the opening of the refurbished Gifford Observatory at which he met with Sir William Pickering, an Honorary Fellow, who was guest of honour at the dinner.
In March he attended and was involved with the 2001 Rutherford Medal presentation to Professor Peter Gluckman FRSNZ in Auckland and the function where Fellows from the Auckland area signed the newly introduced Fellows' Book; he escorted Lord May (President of Royal Society, London) to Palmerston North and resultant visits there; he represented the Royal Society at the announcement of the CoRE fund outcome in Auckland; and he presented Professor Alan MacDiarmid Hon FRSNZ with his Honorary Fellowship certificate in the presence of the Governor General at a morning tea before his investiture at Government House in early March.
In June he addressed the FiRST awards conference in Auckland.
In June he attended New Zealand Institute of Agricultural Science conference in Palmerston North and chaired a session.
In July he opened the IUPAC conference in Christchurch.
In September he spoke to Science Communicators' workshop in Wellington.
He presented Medals and Fellowship certificates at various functions during the year.
He presented S&T Medals to 2001 awardees at various functions during the year.
He wrote to Pete Hodgson regarding capability in ionising radiation in New Zealand, after a senior scientist at the National Radiation Laboratory, and Fellow of the Royal Society, lost his job.
In September, along with the CEO, he visited Pete Hodgson and presented a paper on "Human capability issues in Science and Technology" where two main issues were considered: (i) managing change in the science system and (ii) developing Postgraduate Fellowships of longer duration (5 years) for young scientists.