Scientist wins prestigious award from the Royal Society
Tuesday 8 June 2010
A senior scientist at the University of Surrey has been awarded a top honour from the country’s oldest scientific academic organisation the Royal Society for his pioneering work in science and engineering.
Professor Ravi Silva has been recognised with the Clifford Patterson Prize lecture for his outstanding contribution in the fields of carbon nanoscience and nanotechnology in this year's Royal Society Awards and Medals.
He is the Director of the Advanced Technology Institute (ATI) at the University of Surrey and is a strong advocate of science and technology as a means of wealth creation in the country.
He has been at the forefront in establishing nanotechnology capability in the country as a basis for manufacturing and recently chaired the joint equipment and materials initiative (JEMI) conference on low carbon technologies. The ATI, which he helped establish at Surrey in 2002, at present has over 150 researchers who are working on technology solutions to major challenges and issues facing society.
Prof Silva commented: "I am honoured to receive such a prestigious accolade from the oldest academic society on its celebration of 350 years of excellence in science. I am a firm believer that technology will provide the solutions to move the UK and the world out of recession, and technologists must be present at all levels of governance in society.
“The innovative culture that has been present in academia in the UK for more than three centuries must be preserved at all costs, for it will provide the solutions in a knowledge base economy for wealth creation."
Professor Christopher Snowden, Vice Chancellor of the University, said: “We are very proud that Professor Silva has been awarded this honour and we look forward to seeing the nanotechnology and photonics research programme managed by Professor Silva lead to wealth creation through further successful knowledge transfer.
“The University of Surrey and the National Physical Laboratories have shown the way in which academia can work closely with industry by establishing a Knowledge Transfer Account, with the help of the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, valued in excess of £10m at Surrey, for the exploitation of science in technology, including in the exiting area of nanotechnology and photonics”.
The Clifford Patterson Prize lecture was endowed to the Royal Society in 1975 by The General Electric Company Limited to honour Clifford Paterson who helped create the GEC Research Laboratories in 1919, prior to following a very successful career at the National Physical Laboratories.
Media Enquiries
Howard Wheeler, Press Office at the University of Surrey, Tel: +44 (0)1483 686141, or Email mediarelations@surrey.ac.uk
