The Royal Society of New South Wales is a learned society based in Sydney, Australia. The Governor of New South Wales is the vice-regal patron of the society. It is the oldest learned society in the Southern Hemisphere.
The society traces its origin to the Philosophical Society of Australasia established on 27 June 1821. In 1850, after a period of informal activity, the society was revived as the Australian Philosophical Society and, in 1856, the Philosophical Society of New South Wales. The society was granted Royal Assent on 12 December 1866 and at that time was renamed the Royal Society of New South Wales.
Membership is open to any person interested in the promotion of studies in science, art, literature and philosophy. Fellowship and Distinguished Fellowship are by election, and may be conferred on leaders in their fields. Fellowship and Distinguished Fellowship are honours gazetted under vice-regal authority by the governor of New South Wales, and marked by the post-nominals FRSN and DistFRSN. The society is based in Sydney and has active branches in Mittagong in the Southern Highlands, Bathurst in the Mid-West, and Newcastle in the Hunter Valley. Regular monthly meetings and public lectures are well attended by both members and visitors.
The society publishes a peer-reviewed journal, the Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales, the second-oldest peer-reviewed publication in the Southern Hemisphere.
History The Royal Society of New South Wales traces its origins to the Philosophical Society of Australasia, established on 27 June 1821 and was the first scientific society in the then British Colony of New South Wales.
The society was formed "with a view to enquiring into the various branches of physical science of this vast continent and its adjacent regions". On his arrival in Sydney late in 1821, the newly appointed governor, Sir Thomas Brisbane, was offered and accepted the position of president.
Following a period of informal activity, the society was revitalised (led by Dr Henry Douglass, one of the original founders) and renamed the Australian Philosophical Society on 19 January 1850. The society was renamed the Philosophical Society of New South Wales in 1856. On 12 December 1866, Queen Victoria granted Royal Assent to change its name to The Royal Society of New South Wales. The society was incorporated by Act of the New South Wales Parliament in 1881.
The rules of the society provided that the governor of New South Wales should be president ex officio. After the establishment of the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901, the governor-general became patron of the society, and the governor of New South Wales the vice-patron. From 1938 to 2014, the society was under the joint patronage of the governor-general of Australia and the governor of NSW. The society now has a single vice-regal patron, the governor of NSW.
Throughout its history, the society has done much to foster local research particularly in science, through meetings, symposia, publications and international scientific exchange, and has supported and fostered the endeavours of other organisations dedicated to the furtherance of knowledge.
The society encourages "... studies and investigations in Science, Art, Literature and Philosophy, to promote and further the development of Science and its relationship with Art, Literature and Philosophy and their allied disciplines and applications, to facilitate the exchange of information and ideas amongst the Members and Fellows of the Society and others on these and kindred topics and to disseminate knowledge to the people of New South Wales and beyond ..." through the following activities: Publications of results of scientific investigations through its Journal and Proceedings; Awarding prizes and medals for outstanding achievements in research; Liaison with other similar bodies; Holding meetings for the benefit of members and the general public (special meetings are held for the Pollock Memorial Lecture in Physics and Mathematics, the Liversidge Research Lecture in Chemistry, the Poggendorf Memorial Lecture in Agriculture, the Clarke Memorial Lecture in Geology and the Warren Lecture and Prize in engineering, applied science and technology, and the Royal Society of NSW History and Philosophy of Science Medal); and Maintaining a library.
Journal The society's journal, the Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales is one of the oldest peer-reviewed publications in the Southern Hemisphere. Much innovative research of the 19th and early 20th centuries (e.g. Lawrence Hargrave's work on flight) was first brought to the attention of the scientific world through the Journal and Proceedings of the Royal Society of New South Wales. In the last few decades specialist journals have become preferred for highly technical work but the Journal and Proceedings remains an important publication for multidisciplinary and transdisciplinary work.
The Journal and Proceedings are exchanged with hundreds of institutions worldwide. Issues are published June and December each year.
The society welcomes scholarly work to be considered for publication in the journal. Preference is given to work done in Australia which has relevance to New South Wales. Intending authors must read the style guide, available via the society's web site (Journal), before submitting their manuscript for review.
Distinguished Fellows of the society The society recognises outstanding contributions to science, art, literature or philosophy with the position of Distinguished Fellow. Distinguished Fellows of the society are entitled to use the postnominal Dist FRSN. There can be up to 25 Distinguished Fellows at any one time.
Current Distinguished Fellows of the society Name Discipline Year Contribution Professor Michael Archer AM FAA Dist FRSN Biology and paleobiology 2009 Professor Archer is a distinguished biologist and palaeobiologist. He was one of the key researchers involved in researching the Riversleigh fossil deposits found in Queensland, one of the richest deposits of fossils in the world. The Hon. Dame Marie Bashir AD CVO Dist FRSN Psychiatry and public service 2009 Dame Marie Bashir graduated in medicine and worked in clinical psychiatry and mental health services in Australia and Indochina. In 2001, she was appointed Governor of NSW. During her term as governor she was vice-regal patron of the society. The Hon Emeritus Professor Peter Baume AC Dist FRSN Medicine and public service 2015 Professor Baume served a senator for New South Wales for 16 years in a range of senior ministerial positions. He was head of the School of Community Medicine at the University of NSW and is a former chancellor of the Australian National University. Professor Elizabeth Blackburn AC FAA FRS Dist FRSN Biochemistry and Biophysics 2010 Professor Blackburn was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2010. She discovered the molecular nature of telomeres - the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes that serve as protective caps essential for preserving genetic information and the ribonucleoprotein enzyme telomerase. Professor Robert Clark AO FAA Dist FRSN Physics 2009 Professor Clark was Chief Defence Scientist at the Australian Defence Science and Technology Organisation. Previously he was Professor of Experimental Physics and was Director of the Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computer Technology at the University of New South Wales. Professor Peter Doherty AC FAA FRS FRSE Dist FRSN Immunology2013 Professor Doherty won the 1996 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly with Rolf M. Zinkernagel. Their work discovered how T-cells recognise their targets and led to a much-improved understanding of the immune system recognises virus-infected cells. Professor Barry Jones AO FAA FAHA FTSE FASSA Dist FRSN Politician2012 He was the longest serving Minister for Science from 1983 to 1990 and is the only person to have been elected as a Fellow of all four of Australia's learned Academies. Thomas Keneally AO Dist FRSN Historian 2017 An Australian Living National Treasure, author of many books including The Chant of Jimmy Blacksmith and Schindler's Ark Professor Kurt Lambeck AO FRS FAA Dist FRSN Geophysics, geology, and glaciology 2010 Professor Lambeck is internationally recognised as an expert on the interaction between ice sheets, oceans and the Earth and the impact of ocean levels resulting from climate change. Emeritus Scientia Professor Eugenie Lumbers FAA Dist FRSN Medicine 2010 Professor Lumbers is an internationally respected authority on foetal and maternal physiology. For many years she has worked in cardiovascular and renal physiology, with particular reference to blood pressure regulation in the renin-angiotensin system. Professor Brian Schmidt AC FAA FRS Dist FRSN Astronomy 2012 Awarded the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics with Saul Perlmutter and Adam Riess for providing evidence that the expansion of the universe is accelerating. Professor Michelle Simmons FAA Dist FRSN Physics 2010 Professor Simmons is a Federation Fellow and Director of the Atomic Fabrication Facility at the University of NSW. Her research in nanoelectronics combines molecular beam epitaxy and scanning tunnelling microscopy to develop novel electronic devices at the atomic scale. Professor Richard Stanton AO FAA Dist FRSN Geology2009 Professor Stanton is a distinguished geologist. He recognised the role of volcanism and sedimentation in the formation of new ore deposits, and the physics and chemistry involved in the concentration of copper, zinc and lead in volcanic lavas. Professor Jill Trewhella FAAAS FLANL Dist FRSN Mathematics, physics, chemistry2011 Professor Trewhella gained an international recognition for her work at Los Alamos National Laboratory, in particular contributing to our understanding of the molecular communication that underpins healthy biological function. Professor Bruce Warren FRCPath Dist FRSN Medicine, pathology 2009 Professor Warren is a distinguished pathologist whose research interests concerned tumour biology and thrombosis.
Past Distinguished Fellows of the society