Get Off the Grass

Professor Shaun Hendy FRNZ is a Professor of Computational Physics at Victoria University of Wellington and an Industry and Outreach Fellow at Callaghan Innovation. He was the Deputy Director of the MacDiarmid Institute for Advanced Materials & Nanotechnology from 2008 to 2012. Shaun has a PhD in physics from the University of Alberta in Canada and has research interests in nanotechnology, complex systems and innovation. He has published more than 80 articles in scientific journals. In 2010 Shaun was awarded the New Zealand Association of Scientists Research Medal and a Massey University Distinguished Young Alumni Award. Shaun writes a blog, 'A Measure of Science' as part of Sciblogs.co.nz, a hub for New Zealand's science bloggers, and has a regular slot on Radio New Zealand Nights as physics correspondent. He is a sought-after public speaker and commentator on science and innovation matters. In 2012 he won the Callaghan medal and the Prime Minister's science media communication prize.Professor Sir Paul Callaghan (1947-2012) was one of New Zealand's most successful and internationally renowned scientists. Sir Paul was the founding Director of the MacDiarmid Institute and the Alan MacDiarmid Professor of Physical Science at Victoria University of Wellington. He published over 240 articles in scientific journals as well as the books Principles of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Microscopy in 1994 and Translational Dynamics and Magnetic Resonance in 2011. He was also a founding director and shareholder of Magritek, a technology company based in Wellington that sells nuclear magnetic resonance instruments. He was a regular public speaker on science matters and, in 2007, one of his radio series appeared in book form, As Far as We Know: Conversations about Science, Life and the Universe. His 2009 book, Wool to Weta: Transforming New Zealand's Culture and Economy, deals with the potential for science and technology entrepreneurialism to diversify New Zealand's economy. In 2001 Sir Paul became the 36th New Zealander to be made a Fellow of the Royal Society of London. He was awarded the Ampere Prize in 2004 and the Rutherford Medal in 2005. He was appointed a Principal Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 2006 and in 2007 was recognised by a KEA/NZTE World Class New Zealander Award and the Sir Peter Blake Medal. In 2010 he was awarded the Gunther Laukien Prize for Magnetic Resonance and shared the Prime Minister's Science Prize. In 2011 he was named the Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year.