Five scientists win top Australia Day honours: Amid pandemic, is science having a moment?

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Australian science has taken centre stage at this year’s Australia Day Honours list, with leading scientists making up five of the seven people recognised with the day’s highest honour.

Australian science has taken centre stage at this year’s Australia Day Honours list, with leading scientists making up five of the seven people appointed Companions of the Order of Australia – the day’s highest honour.

“No, I am not hopeful,” said Professor James Dale. “I think there is ample evidence from this pandemic, particularly in the past 12 months, that politics and political allegiances will always trump science and scientific advice.”Professor Dale, who is based at the Queensland University of Technology, was on Tuesday made a Companion of the Order of Australia for eminent service to agricultural science.

Australia Day Honours have four levels of increasing seniority: Medal of the Order of Australia, Member of the Order of Australia, Officer of the Order of Australia, and Companion of the Order of Australia – which is reserved for Australians who have provided the “highest degree” of service.This year, five of the seven Companions of the Order of Australia are scientists; 58 Australians in total were recognised for service responding to the pandemic.

“The general public has probably realised that imperative and huge investment in [research and development] can lead to amazing results. Unfortunately, nearly all this investment in R and D occurred outside Australia.” Dr Alan Finkel, Australia’s chief scientist until 2020, has been appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia. He said politicians of all stripes now accepted the science of the climate crisis.“The message is out there, and they have heard it. The question is how do you respond. You have to balance the science and the economics and the community issues and the politics.”

She is a world-leading evolutionary geneticist whose work on Australian animals transformed the way scientists think about how sex chromosomes work.“I am always stunned that well-educated people have only the haziest idea of how genes work and get passed down. Let alone what a human is made of and how our bodies work.”

 

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