Royal Society of London Honours UBC Prof

UBC math professor Martin Barlow joins the ranks of such luminaries as Stephen Hawking, Albert Einstein, Charles Darwin and Isaac Newton in his recent election to the Royal Society of London.

“UBC is extremely pleased for Professor Barlow. This is a significant honour and truly recognizes the international stature and importance of his contributions,” says David Dolphin, acting vice president, Research.

Barlow has pioneered mathematical tools that analyze diffusions on fractals, which he has studied for the past 20 years. Theories about diffusions on fractals are used to show how heat flows through certain materials or how liquids can move through irregular objects such as sand and pebbles in ground soil.

“It’s wonderful when one receives such an honour especially since I find this work immensely worthwhile and enjoyable,” says Barlow.

The Royal Society of London elects 44 new fellows each year, recognizing excellence among scientists and engineers and technologists in the U.K., Commonwealth countries and Ireland. Founded in 1660, the Society is one of the world’s oldest and most prestigious scientific academies with more than 1,300 members, 20 of whom are Nobel Prize winners.

Election to the academy is regarded as one of the highest awards in science. Other UBC faculty previously named to the Royal Society of London include David Dolphin, chemistry, Dolph Schluter, zoology, William Unrh, physics and Nobel laureate Michael Smith, chemistry.

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