Tall Poppy Awards 2006

The University of Sydney featured prominently in the 2006 NSW/ACT Young Tall Poppy Science Awards announced on 26 October at a special event held at the NSW State Parliament House.

Sydney academics made up 5 of the 15 announced winners of the award which recognise the academic achievements of outstanding young researchers in the sciences.

Dr Geraldine O'Neill, Senior Lecturer in Paediatrics and Child Health in the Faculty of Medicine, was recognised for her research into two primary causes of cancer - patient mortality, resistance to anti-cancer therapies and secondary cancer.

Dr Andrew Hopkins, ARC QEII Fellow in the School of Physics, won an award for his achievements in astrophysics and outreach activities. Dr Hopkin's outreach activities include sponsoring an annual award for excellence in Year 12 Science at his former high school.

Other University of Sydney winners included Dr Alaina Ammit for her research on asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and ARC Postdoctoral Fellow Dr James Curran won an award for his research into computational linguistics.

Dr Andrew Harris also received an award for his research into cutting edge technologies which help in the transition to a more sustainable society, particularly in the areas of nano and bio-sciences.

Contact: Jake O'Shaughnessy

Phone: +61 2 9351 4312 or 0421 617 861

Email: jacob@media.usyd.edu.au