Fellows elected in 2016

Geoff Lindeman and his team identified the stem and progenitor cells that generate all ductal tissue in the breast, in both mice and humans. His laboratory was the first to identify the culprit progenitor cell responsible for breast cancer in BRCA1 mutation carriers.

Alex McBratney is a world-leading soil scientist who conceived and developed pedometrics, digital soil mapping and soil security, radically strengthening the knowledge base of soil science. His contributions have revolutionised the availability of soil information and led to improved agricultural practices with reduced environmental impacts and enhanced security of the world’s soil.

Patrick McGorry has created new concepts for psychotic disorders and a new clinical and research focus on youth mental health. His work has led to earlier diagnosis and better outcomes for young people with mental illness.

Neville Nicholls is the world’s pre-eminent expert on the nature, causes, predictability and impacts of inter-annual climate variability in Australia and its region. His research is the basis for operational prediction of climate variations and their impacts including droughts, crop yields, bushfire and tropical cyclone activity, and human health impacts, in Australia and elsewhere.

Stephen Nutt is renowned for his work on the molecular controls that determine how white blood cells develop and function to provide protective immunity. He has had a major impact on deciphering what goes awry in diseases such as leukaemia and autoimmunity.

Sarah Robertson is a world-renowned reproductive biologist whose innovative research in has formed the basis for a new understanding of the origins of health at conception. Her discoveries are improving practise in reproductive medicine especially in fetal development and offspring health.

Halina Rubinsztein-Dunlop is recognised internationally for her achievements in laser physics, linear and nonlinear high resolution spectroscopy, laser micromanipulation, atom cooling and trapping and nano-optics. Her work on Dynamical tunnelling of ultra-cold atoms was one of the experimental milestones in quantum chaos.

Susan Scott has made ground-breaking discoveries in the fields of general relativity and gravitational wave science. Her theoretical work includes advancing our understanding of both singularities and the global structure of space-time. Professor Scott has also been a pioneer in the analysis of astrophysical signatures in gravitational wave experiments.

Daniela Stock is a renowned structural biologist interested in molecular machines, molecular rotary motors and membrane proteins. She has redefined bioenergetics and has developed new insights into biological energy conversion.

Fedor Sukochev is a world leader in finding novel analytic approaches to complicated interdisciplinary problems. He is an internationally recognised expert in three related but distinct areas: noncommutative analysis; non-commutative geometry and; non-commutative probability.

Toby Walsh has made important scientific contributions in three closely related areas: artificial intelligence, constraint programming and computational social choice. He has been a pioneer in theoretical artificial intelligence, building on ideas from fields including statistical physics, economics and game theory to study many complex and challenging optimisation problems such as scheduling and vehicle routing.

Naomi Wray is a leading complex trait statistical geneticist. She has contributed significantly to quantitative genetic and evolutionary selection theory, with applications in agriculture and medicine. Her theoretical work on the prediction of rates of inbreeding in populations undergoing selection, has led to changes in agricultural selection programmes worldwide.