Three scholars awarded medals, 11 elected as Fellows

TORONTO - A cosmologist who researches black holes, an expert in the construction of balloon-borne telescopes and a pioneering civil engineer are among the 14 University of Toronto Faculty recently honoured by the Royal Society of Canada.

"Recognition by the Royal Society of Canada is one of the great honours of a scholar's life," said U of T President David Naylor. "Each of these research leaders is richly deserving of these awards and appointments, not only for their expertise and innovation in their specific fields, but also for creating knowledge on which the next generations of scholars can build and, of course, for the positive impact their work on society."

Founded in 1882, the Royal Society of Canada is the country's oldest and most prestigious scholarly organization. Its official name is RSC: Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada (SRC: Académies des Arts, des Lettres et des Sciences du Canada).

2009 medal winners are:

Richard Bond, Canadian Institute for Theoretical Astrophysics, winner of the Henry Marshall Tory Medal. The medal recognizes outstanding research in astronomy, chemistry, mathematics, or physics. One of the world's leading cosmologists, Bond is responsible for major new insights into dark matter, black holes and the structure and evolution of the universe. He has been honoured with a wealth of important prizes, including the 2008 Cosmology Prize of the Peter and Patricia Gruber Foundation, the Humboldt Award and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Council's Gerhard Herzberg Gold Medal.

Barth Netterfield, astronomy and physics, winner of the Rutherford Memorial Prize in Physics. This award recognizes outstanding research in any branch of physics (there is also a Rutherford medal for chemistry). Netterfield is an observational cosmologist. His research is in the construction and use of balloon borne telescopes, which can achieve many of the benefits of space-based telescopes. His other prestigious honours include a EWR Steacie Memorial Fellowship and a Sloan Foundation Fellowship.

R. Paul Young, civil engineering, winner of the Willet G. Miller Medal for outstanding research in any branch of earth sciences. Young is the Keck Chair of Seismology and Rock Mechanics and founding director of the Lassonde Institute for Engineering Geoscience. Young has pioneered many of the techniques used today in monitoring induced seismicity in the mining, petroleum and nuclear waste disposal industries. In 2008, his U of T lab was the first research group to simulate the seismic signals that precede a volcanic eruption, which will better equip municipal authorities in volcanic hot spots around the world in knowing when to alert people who live near volcanoes of an impending eruption.

Faculty members elected as fellows of the RSC include Raymond Carlberg, astronomy; J.K. Chambers, linguistics; Anthony Doob, Centre of Criminology; George Eleftheriades, electrical and computer engineering; Andres Lozano, Faculty of Medicine/University Health Network; Robert Orr, physics; Robert Reisz, biology, University of Toronto Mississauga; Gregory Scholes, chemistry; Philip Sohm, art; Germaine Warkentin, Victoria College English; Min Zhuo, physiology.