2002 Annual Report Of The Royal Society of New Zealand

Incorporating the 2002 Academy Council Yearbook

Report of the Academy Council

The Royal Society of New Zealand Act 1997 provides a distinct and effective role and responsibility for the Academy. The object of the Academy Council is to contribute to the achievement of the object of the Society, namely the advancement and promotion of science and technology in New Zealand and, without limiting the generality of this, the Academy Council shall recognise and encourage excellence and outstanding achievements in science and technology and contribute to the intellectual leadership role of the Society.

The Fellowship

At the thirty-seventh Annual General Meeting of the Fellows of the Royal Society of New Zealand held in Wellington on 2122 November 2002 the following were elected to the Fellowship:

John ABRAHAMSON
Patrick Richard Lee BROWNE
Allan Muirhead CRAWFORD
Robert Olin DAVIS
John Roger FLENLEY
Rosalind Susan GIBSON
Harlene HAYNE
David KELLY
Kenneth John Dallas MACKENZIE
Robert Iain MCLACHLAN
Alison Ruth MERCER
Harjinder SINGH
Robin Andrew James SMITH
Graham John WEIR

There were 306 Fellows as at 31 December 2002.

Honorary Fellowship

On the recommendation of the Fellowship Selection Committee, the Academy Council appointed the following as Honorary Fellows in 2002:

Jillian Frances EVANS
Warwick Fairley VINCENT
Mark WARNER

There were 46 Honorary Fellows at 31 December 2002.

Deaths

It is noted with regret that the following Fellows died during 2002:

Dr Richard Kenneth Dell, Former Director of National Museum, and former President of the Royal Society of New Zealand from 1977 to 1981;
Professor Dennis Brown, Emeritus Professor of Physics at The University of Auckland.
Sir Raymond (William) Firth, Emeritus Professor, University of London, and Professor Henryk Szarski, Jagiellonian University, Poland, both Honorary Fellows also died during 2002.

Obituaries for Dr Dell and Sir Raymond Firth are published earlier in this Yearbook. Obituaries for Professors Brown and Szarski will be published in the 2003 Yearbook.

Fellowship of Royal Society (London)

Professor Robin Carrell was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (London) in May 2002.

Public Honours

New Years Honours 2002

The Order of New Zealand (ONZ)

Professor Alan MacDiarmid ONZ Hon FRSNZ of Pennsylvania, USA

Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit (CNZM)

Emeritus Professor Douglas Coombs CNZM of Dunedin for services to mineralogy.

Queen's Birthday and Golden Jubilee Honours 2002

The Order of New Zealand (ONZ)

Sir Hugh Kawharu ONZ FRSNZ, Auckland

The New Zealand Order of Merit - Distinguished Companion (DCNZM)

Professor Vaughan Jones DCNZM Hon FRSNZ, California, USA (mathematics)

Companions (CNZM)

Dr Henry Connor CNZM FRSNZ, Christchurch (botany)

Professor Diana Hill CNZM FRSNZ, Dunedin (science)

Professor Jim Mann CNZM FRSNZ, Dunedin (medicine)

Officers (ONZM)

Professor Michael Corballis ONZM FRSNZ, Auckland (psychological science)

Professor Jane Harding ONZM FRSNZ, Auckland (paediatrics)

Professor Tony Reeve ONZM FRSNZ, Dunedin (medical science)

Professor Erik Olssen ONZM FRSNZ, Dunedin (historical research)

Governor of Reserve Bank

Dr Alan Bollard FRSNZ, formerly Secretary for the Treasury, became new Governor of the Reserve Bank in October 2002.

Vice-President of ISHS

Professor Ian Warrington FRSNZ was appointed the Vice-President of the Board of International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS) in August 2002.

Vice-President of ICSU

Head of the Institute of Fundamental Sciences at Massey University, Professor David Parry FRSNZ, was elected Vice-President of the International Council for Science (ICSU) at a meeting of the ICSU General Assembly in Rio de Janeiro in September 2002.

Professor Parry is the first New Zealander to be appointed to this position on the international executive that represents about 5 million scientists from 27 unions and 103 countries worldwide.

Professor Parry is one of two vice-presidents of the Council, which was established in 1931 and which is based in Paris.

Geophysicist awarded Shorland Medal

Geophysicist Dr Hugh Bibby FRSNZ was awarded the 2002 Shorland Medal by the New Zealand Association of Scientists in October 2002, for his outstanding lifetime contribution to developing methods for exploring the nation's geology.

Dr Bibby, who works for the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences, played a crucial role in finding something that eluded scientists for decadesa way to successfully identify and image the molten rock and hot water in the Taupo Volcanic Zone (TVZ), using "electrical prospecting".

Dr Bibby also received the award for his work in measuring earth deformation and developing methods to compare surveying data collected using different techniques, including the global positioning system using satellites.

Horticultural scientist awarded Marsden Medal

Dr Howard Wearing, who was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand in 2001, was awarded the 2002 New Zealand Association of Scientists' Marsden Medal. The Marsden Medal presentation was at Lincoln University in November 2002. Recently retired from HortResearch, one of Dr Wearing's most significant career achievements was to gain access to Japan for cherries and other fruit. This entailed an effective blend of science leadership and country-to-country negotiations over 11 years.

Academy Council Awards

The Academy's suite of awards recognises excellence in the sciences and technologies covered by the Academy. In 2002 the following medals and awards were allocated: Hutton Medal (Animal Sciences); Sir Charles Hercus Medal (Biomedical Sciences and Technologies); Cooper Medal for the best account of research work carried out in New Zealand in physics or engineering; Thomson Medal in recognition of outstanding contributions in the fields of the organisation, administration or application of science and technology; Hamilton Memorial Prize (for the encouragement of beginners in scientific and technological research in New Zealand); Hatherton Award (for the best scientific paper by a student registered for a PhD at a New Zealand University, published or accepted for publication either during their studies or within a year of the receipt of the PhD in the physical sciences, earth sciences and mathematical and information sciences).

The 2002 Cooper Medal was awarded to Professor Dong Chen FRSNZ of The University of Auckland, for cutting-edge contributions to Food Process Engineering.

The 2002 Hutton Medal in Animal Sciences was awarded to Professor Roger Morris FRSNZ of Massey University, for outstanding contribution to the advancement of animal sciences particularly in the area of animal health and the control of infectious diseases including those with human health implications.

The 2002 Hamilton Memorial Prize for the encouragement of beginners in scientific or technological research in New Zealand was awarded to Dr Adrian Walcroft, who undertook his PhD studies at the University of Waikato. He has made an important contribution to the area of plant physiology.

The 2002 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 Mr Robert McCormick of the University of Otago, for his contribution as senior author to "Reconsidering the effectiveness of quasi-static thunderstorm electric fields for whistler duct formation", now "in press" with the Journal of Geophysical Research.

There were no nominations for the Sir Charles Hercus Medal in 2002.

There was no Thomson Medal awarded in 2002.

Academy Representation on the Royal Society of New Zealand Council

The three Academy Council representatives on the Royal Society of New Zealand Council in 2002 were: the President, Professor Paul Callaghan; President Elect, Professor Carolyn Burns; and Professor David Elms.