Centre member, Associate Professor Darren Curnoe has been nominated as a finalist in the Science Communication and Journalism Category for the Australian Government Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Australian Science Research.

Through documentaries, regular radio appearances, a blog, media commentary and articles in the Conversation and elsewhere, Darren has had a major influence on public understanding of human origins.

Science Communication & Journalism

Australian Government Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Australian Science Research

- See more at: http://australianmuseum.net.au/2014-Finalists-Eureka#sthash.yOnh6rlt.dpuf

Science Communication & Journalism

Australian Government Eureka Prize for Promoting Understanding of Australian Science Research

- See more at: http://australianmuseum.net.au/2014-Finalists-Eureka#sthash.yOnh6rlt.dpuf

Winners will be announced at the award dinner at Sydney Town Hall on Wednesday 10 September.

The other UNSW Science nominees are:

Scientia Professor Michelle Simmons, Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology, is nominated for the prize for Leadership in Science. She heads a team of more than 180 Australian researchers whose ground-breaking work has opened a new frontier in computing and electronics, placing Australia at the forefront of this research field.

 Professor Steven Sherwood, of the Climate Change Research Centre, is nominated for the prize for Scientific Research. He has made crucial advances in the understanding of Earth’s climate by addressing two important questions: By how much will the world warm in future? And how readily could we adapt?

Professor David Keithof the UNSW School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences and his team in the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, are nominated for the prize for Environmental Research. They developed the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems – the first global standard for assessing ecosystems at high risk of degradation around the world.

Scientia Professor Justin Gooding, of the School of Chemistry, Professor Katharina Gauss, of the Faculty of Medicine, and Dr Peter Reece, of the School of Physics, are nominated for the prize for Excellence in Interdisciplinary Scientific Research. They have developed an optical device that can monitor the activity of a single living cell, with wide-ranging applications in drug discovery, toxin detection and personalised medicine.

Dr Lisa Alexander, Dr Sarah Perkins and Dr Markus Donat, of the Climate Change Research Centre – dubbed The Extremes Team – are nominated for the prize for Outstanding Early Career Researcher.  Led by Dr Alexander, they have made major advances in assessing the long-term global trends in both temperature and precipitation extremes.

Other nominees:

Professor Maree Teesson, Director of the NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Mental Health and Substance Abuse in the Faculty of Medicine, is nominated for the prize for Outstanding Mentor of Young Researchers. Her vision, drive, compassion and care have made her an outstanding mentor of the next generation of researchers, placing Australia at the international forefront of this discipline.

Congratulations also go to three other finalists: Dr Tri Phan, of the Garvan Institute of Medical Research; Professor Hugh Durrant-Whyte, of National ICT Australia, and Dr Ravi Bakaraju, of the Brien Holden Vision Institute.

Media contact: UNSW Science media officer: Deborah Smith: 9385 7307, 0478 492 060, deborah.smith@unsw.edu.au