Sir Thomas Brisbane (President) Dr James Bowman Dr Henry Douglass Judge Barron Field Major Frederick Goulburn Captain Francis Irvine Edward Wollstonecraft Esq
Established
1821 – as the Philosophical Society of Australasia 1866 – Royal assent received from Queen Victoria and renamed as the Royal Society of New South Wales
Focus
"... for the encouragement of studies and investigations in Science, Art, Literature and Philosophy ..."
Up to 25 Distinguished Fellows 400 Fellows and 200 Members[2]
Formerly called
The Philosophical Society of Australasia (1821-50) The Australian Philosophical Society (1850-56) The Philosophical Society of New South Wales (1856-66)
The Royal Society of New South Wales is a learned society based in Sydney, Australia. The Governor of New South Wales is the vice-regal patron of the Society. It is the oldest learned society in the Southern Hemisphere.
The Society traces its origin to the Philosophical Society of Australasia established on 27 June 1821. In 1850, after a period of informal activity, the Society was revived as the Australian Philosophical Society and, in 1856, the Philosophical Society of New South Wales. The Society was granted Royal Assent on 12 December 1866 and at that time was renamed the Royal Society of New South Wales.
Membership is open to any person interested in the promotion of studies in Science, Art, Literature and Philosophy. Fellowship and Distinguished Fellowship are by election, and may be conferred on leaders in their fields. Fellowship and Distinguished Fellowship are honours gazetted under vice-regal authority by the Governor of New South Wales, and marked by the post-nominals FRSN and DistFRSN. The Society is based in Sydney and has active branches in Mittagong in the Southern Highlands, Bathurst in the Mid-West, and Newcastle in the Hunter Valley. Regular monthly meetings and public lectures are well attended by both members and visitors.
The Royal Society of New South Wales traces its origins to the Philosophical Society of Australasia, established on 27 June 1821 and was the first scientific society in the then British Colony of New South Wales.
The Society was formed "with a view to enquiring into the various branches of physical science of this vast continent and its adjacent regions". On his arrival in Sydney late in 1821, the newly appointed Governor, Sir Thomas Brisbane, was offered and accepted the position of President.
Following a period of informal activity, the Society was revitalised (led by Dr Henry Douglass, one of the original founders) and renamed the Australian Philosophical Society on 19 January 1850. The society was renamed the Philosophical Society of New South Wales in 1856. On 12 December 1866, Queen Victoria granted Royal Assent to change its name to The Royal Society of New South Wales. The Society was incorporated by Act of the New South Wales Parliament in 1881.
The rules of the Society provided that the Governor of New South Wales should be President ex officio. After the establishment of the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901, the Governor-General became Patron of the Society, and the Governor of New South Wales the Vice-Patron. From 1938 to 2014, the Society was under the joint patronage of the Governor-General of Australia and the Governor of NSW. The Society now has a single Vice-Regal Patron, the Governor of NSW.
Throughout its history, the Society has done much to foster local research particularly in science, through meetings, symposia, publications and international scientific exchange, and has supported and fostered the endeavours of other organisations dedicated to the furtherance of knowledge.
The Society encourages "... studies and investigations in Science, Art, Literature and Philosophy, to promote and further the development of Science and its relationship with Art, Literature and Philosophy and their allied disciplines and applications, to facilitate the exchange of information and ideas amongst the Members and Fellows of the Society and others on these and kindred topics and to disseminate knowledge to the people of New South Wales and beyond ..." through the following activities:
Publications of results of scientific investigations through its Journal and Proceedings;
Awarding prizes and medals for outstanding achievements in research;
Liaison with other similar bodies;
Holding meetings for the benefit of members and the general public (special meetings are held for the Pollock Memorial Lecture in Physics and Mathematics, the Liversidge Research Lecture in Chemistry, the Poggendorf Memorial Lecture in Agriculture, the Clarke Memorial Lecture in Geology and the Warren Lecture and Prize in engineering, applied science and technology, and the Royal Society of NSW History and Philosophy of Science Medal); and
Maintaining a library.
Journal
The Society's journal, the Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales is one of the oldest peer-reviewed publications in the Southern Hemisphere. Much innovative research of the 19th and early 20th centuries (e.g. Lawrence Hargrave's work on flight) was first brought to the attention of the scientific world through the Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales. In the last few decades specialist journals have become preferred for highly technical work but the Journal and Proceedings remains an important publication for multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary work.
The Journal and Proceedings are exchanged with hundreds of institutions worldwide. Issues are published June and December each year.
The Society welcomes scholarly work to be considered for publication in the Journal. Preference is given to work done in Australia which has relevance to New South Wales. Intending authors must read the style guide, available via the Society's web site (Journal), before submitting their manuscript for review.
Distinguished Fellows of the Society
The Society recognises outstanding contributions to science, art, literature or philosophy with the position of Distinguished Fellow. Distinguished Fellows of the Society are entitled to use the postnominal Dist FRSN. There can be up to 25 Distinguished Fellows at any one time.
Professor Archer is a distinguished biologist and palaeobiologist. He was one of the key researchers involved in researching the Riversleigh fossil deposits found in Queensland, one of the richest deposits of fossils in the world.
Dame Marie Bashir graduated in medicine and worked in clinical psychiatry and mental health services in Australia and Indochina. In 2001, she was appointed Governor of NSW. During her term as Governor she was Vice-Regal Patron of the Society.
Professor Baume served a Senator for New South Wales for 16 years in a range of senior ministerial positions. He was Head of the School of Community Medicine at the University of NSW and is a former Chancellor of the Australian National University.
Professor Blackburn was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2010. She discovered the molecular nature of telomeres - the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes that serve as protective caps essential for preserving genetic information and the ribonucleoprotein enzyme telomerase.
Professor Clark was Chief Defence Scientist at the Australian Defence Science and Technology Organisation. Previously he was Professor of Experimental Physics and was Director of the Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computer Technology at the University of New South Wales.
Professor Doherty won the 1996 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly with Rolf M. Zinkernagel. Their work discovered how T-cells recognise their targets and led to a much-improved understanding of the immune system recognises virus-infected cells.
He was the longest serving Minister for Science from 1983 to 1990 and is the only person to have been elected as a Fellow of all four of Australia's learned Academies.
Professor Lambeck is internationally recognised as an expert on the interaction between ice sheets, oceans and the Earth and the impact of ocean levels resulting from climate change.
Professor Lumbers is an internationally respected authority on foetal and maternal physiology. For many years she has worked in cardiovascular and renal physiology, with particular reference to blood pressure regulation in the renin-angiotensin system.
Professor Simmons is a Federation Fellow and Director of the Atomic Fabrication Facility at the University of NSW. Her research in nanoelectronics combines molecular beam epitaxy and scanning tunnelling microscopy to develop novel electronic devices at the atomic scale.
Professor Richard Stanton AO FAA Dist FRSN
Geology
2009
Professor Stanton is a distinguished geologist. He recognised the role of volcanism and sedimentation in the formation of new ore deposits, and the physics and chemistry involved in the concentration of copper, zinc and lead in volcanic lavas.
Professor Trewhella gained an international recognition for her work at Los Alamos National Laboratory, in particular contributing to our understanding of the molecular communication that underpins healthy biological function.
Lord May was one of Australia's most distinguished mathematicians. He had a key role in the application of chaos theory to theoretical ecology through the 1970s and 1980s. He was awarded the Copley Medal by the Royal Society (London) in 2007.
Professor Brown was a distinguished mathematician and educator. He was Inaugural Director of the Royal Institution of Australia after 12 years as Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Sydney. His research areas were broad, including measure theory and algebraic geometry and his contributions both to education and mathematics have been recognised worldwide.
Professor Craig's research work was in several fields but was especially pioneering in the then new and very difficult field of excitons in molecular crystals. He also did major work in the field of molecular quantum electrodynamics.
Professor Kelly established an internationally renowned research centre on ion implantation and material defects at the University of New South Wales. He jointly invented a photovoltaic solar collector surface, which, at the time, was the world's most efficient and is now in mass production in China.
Professor Hush was one of Australia's most distinguished and internationally renowned chemists with outstanding achievements in computational and theoretical quantum chemistry.
Notable members
Charles Anderson, mineralogist, paleontologist and president in 1924
Edward Wollstonecraft, a founding member of the original Philosophical Society of Australasia
Horatio George Anthony Wright, microscopist and medical practitioner, honorary treasurer 1879–85 and 1893–1901, vice-president 1885–86 and 1891–92, chairman microscopy 1877–92
Awards
The society makes a number of awards for meritorious contributions in the field of science.[4]
The Clarke Medal is awarded by the Society for distinguished work in the Natural sciences. It was named in honour of the Reverend William Branwhite Clarke, one of the founders of the Society. The medal was to be "awarded for meritorious contributions to Geology, Mineralogy and Natural History of Australasia, to be open to men of science, whether resident in Australasia or elsewhere". The Medal is now awarded annually for distinguished work in the natural sciences (geology, botany and zoology) done in the Australian Commonwealth and its territories. Each discipline is considered every three years.[5] For a complete list of medalists see Clarke Medal.
The Edgeworth David Medal, established in 1942, is awarded for distinguished contributions by a young scientists under the age of thirty-five years for work done mainly in Australia or its territories or contributing to Australian science. It is named after the geologist, Sir Edgeworth David, FRS, who wrote the first comprehensive record of the geology of Australia.[6]
The James Cook Medal, established in 1947, is awarded periodically for outstanding contributions to science and human welfare in and for the Southern Hemisphere.[7]
Presidents
From 1850 to 1880, the President of the Society was the Governor of New South Wales. In 1881, when the Society was incorporated by an Act of the New South Wales Parliament, the Act provided that Presidents of the Society be elected by the members.
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