The Newsletter of Scotland's National Academy

ISSUE 42 SPRING 2014 Ther Newsletteres ourcof Scotland’s National Academye Former President of Ireland, Professor Mary McAleese HonFRSE, delivered the annual MacCormick European Lecture in December 2013 – The Good Friday Agreement Fifteen Years on: Plateau or Platform for Consolidating Peace in the European Union. A video of this fascinating lecture and the summary report are available at: www.rse.org.uk/1111_December2013.html Also featured in this issue: New Fellows elected in 2014 Informing the Constitutional Debate Visits to CERN and Poland resource SPRING 2014 New RSE Fellows 2014 The names of the new Fellows, elected by ballot to the Fellowship in January this year, were announced at an Ordinary Meeting of the RSE on 3 March 2014. These Fellows will be formally welcomed to the RSE at an Admission Ceremony on Monday 19 May. Sir John Arbuthnott said, “I am delighted to welcome all of these new Fellows to the Royal Society of Edinburgh. I am particularly pleased that one-third of these new Fellows are female, and that we have been able to elect more people from business and from the creative arts to the Fellowship”. HONORARY FELLOWS CORRESPONDING FELLOWS BUCKINGHAM, Margaret Elizabeth AITCHISON, James Stewart Department of Development and Stem Cell Biology, Professor and Nortel Chair in Emerging Technology, The Institut Pasteur, France University of Toronto, Canada DAVIES, Sir Peter Maxwell COWAN, James Allan Master of the Queen’s Music Melvin S. Newman Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Ohio State University, USA KENNEDY OF THE SHAWS, Baroness Helena Ann GROSZ, Barbara Principal, Mansfield College, Oxford Higgins Professor of Natural Sciences, Harvard University, USA LOCHHEAD, Elizabeth Anne ZACCAI, Giuseppe Poet and Scots Makar Directeur de Recherche Emérite CNRS, Institut de Biologie Structurale, France FELLOWS ALLEN, Judith Elizabeth GENTZ, Natascha Professor of Immunobiology and Director of Research, Dean, International (China) and Professor of Chinese, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh University of Edinburgh BLAXTER, Mark Lyon GLASIER, Annabelle Frances Professor of Evolutionary Genomics, University of Edinburgh Honorary Professor, University of Edinburgh BUTTAR, Rabinder GOLDBERG, David Chairman and CEO, ClinTec International Ltd Consultant Epidemiologist/Public Health Medicine, Health Protection Scotland COOPER, Thomas Joshua Founder and Head of Department, Fine Art Photography, GREIG, David Glasgow School of Art Playwright CUMMING, David Robert Sime HALPIN, Claire Professor of Electronic Systems and Head of Electronics Professor of Plant Biology and Biotechnology, and Nanoscale Engineering Research Division, University of Dundee University of Glasgow HUDSON, John Geoffrey Henry CUNNINGHAM-BURLEY, Sarah Jane Professor of Legal History, Head of School of Molecular, Genetic and University of St Andrews Population Health Sciences, University of Edinburgh INSALL, Robert Harding DAVEY SMITH, George Group leader, Beatson Institute for Cancer Research and Professor of Clinical Epidemiology, University of Bristol Professor of Genetics & Cell Biology, University of Glasgow 2 resource SPRING 2014 FELLOWS IVISON, Robert Julian PIACENTINI, Laura Francesca Director for Science, European Southern Observatory Professor of Criminology, University of Strathclyde JACKSON, Andrew Peter RAE, David Alasdair Hamley Programme Leader, MRC Human Genetics Unit, Director of Horticulture and Learning, University of Edinburgh Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh KERR, William John RAMBAUT, Andrew 1919 Professor of Organic Chemistry, University of Strathclyde Professor of Molecular Evolution, University of Edinburgh LEIMKUHLER, Benedict Joseph RENFREW, Mary Josephine Professor of Applied Mathematics, University of Edinburgh Professor of Mother and Infant Health, University of Dundee LEITH, Campbell Blair Professor of Macroeconomics, University of Glasgow SALT, David Edward Co-Director of the Centre for Genome Enabled Biology LUNN, Rebecca and Medicine, University of Aberdeen Head of Department, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, SANNELLA, Donald Theodore University of Strathclyde Professor of Computer Science, University of Edinburgh LUO, Xiaoyu SIMMONDS, Peter Professor of Applied Mathematics, University of Glasgow Professor of Virology, University of Edinburgh MACCOLL, John Anthony TASKER, Peter Anthony University Librarian, University of St Andrews Emeritus Professor of Chemistry, University of Edinburgh MCMAHON, Malcolm Iain THOMSON, Benjamin John Paget Professor of High Pressure Physics, University of Edinburgh Chairman of Trustees, National Galleries of Scotland MCMEEKING, Robert Maxwell TOMKINS, Adam Sixth Century Professor of Engineering Materials, Professor of Law, University of Glasgow University of Aberdeen TOOZE, Robert Paul MCVIE, Susan Managing Director, Sasol Technology UK Ltd Professor of Quantitative Criminology, University of Edinburgh TRAGER-COWAN, Carol MACHESKY, Laura Marie Reader in the Department of Physics, Professor of Cancer Biology, University of Glasgow University of Strathclyde MATTHEWS, Keith Roland ULIJN, Rein Vincent Director, Centre for Immunity, Infection and Evolution, Burmah Professor of Physical Chemistry, University of Edinburgh University of Strathclyde MINTO, Bruce Watson VANNESTE, Jacques Henri Managing Partner and Co-Founder, Dickson Minto Professor of Fluid Dynamics, University of Edinburgh OSBORNE, Steven WATT, Graham Charles Murray Concert Pianist Professor of General Practice, University of Glasgow PATERSON, Calum MacDonald WRIGHT, Gillian Susan Managing Partner, Scottish Equity Partners Director, STFC UK Astronomy Technology Centre 3 resource SPRING 2014 International One of the main purposes of the RSE International Programme is to award short-term travel grants to enable Scottish researchers to establish links with colleagues in other countries with a view to a long-lasting collaboration, through joint publications and joint applications for longer-term funds. The RSE also supports longer-term collaborations through the Joint Project Scheme with the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), which facilitates longer-term international collaboration between researchers based in Scotland and China by providing two years’-worth of funding. Recent International Case Studies Professor Arjunan Subramanian Economics, Business School, University of Glasgow Visited: Professor Gopal Naikv Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, India Recent years have witnessed renewed appreciation that agriculture could play a significant role in the pursuit of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. In this context, the role of information dissemination through information and communication technology (ICT) in improving rural welfare is highlighted. However, some fear that with ICT, technological disparity will arise and existing socio-economic inequality and poverty will be further exacerbated. This study used randomised surveys The primary purpose of the visit was to use field work to engage in agriculture-related before and after an experiment to extension work with farmers and their organisations through focus group investigate the impact of ICT on rural discussions and implementation of the household surveys. The image above shows welfare in the Indian state of Karnataka. interaction with the farmers using the Samsung Tablets on the best agricultural The experiment involved facilitating practices. The interaction and the response from the farmers were overwhelming; information access on key agriculture- hence all the information-dissemination activities initiated during this visit are being related services to households in some continued for over a year. villages and not in others. The impact of information dissemination on Following the visit, a research paper was submited to the Applied Geography journal; agricultural practices, household a lecture was delivered at the Centre for Public Policy, IIM Bangalore to an audience incomes, social network, risk-coping consisting of academicians and policy makers – Potential benefits of rural telecenters mechanism and caste disparity was in Karnataka – some observation;and Professor Subramanian chaired a session on measured by combining data from both Agriculture at the Eighth Annual International Conference on Public Policy and surveys and the experiment. Management held at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore in August 2013. 4 resource SPRING 2014 Scottish-based host: Robert Wilson Dr Björn Gunnarson has been affiliated School of Geography & Geosciences, University of St Andrews with the Scottish Pine Project for several years. This project aimed to reconstruct Overseas visitor: Björn Gunnarson past summer temperatures for Scotland Department of Physical Geography & Quaternary Geology, using tree-ring proxy archives. Stockholm University Dr Gunnarson is not only experienced with the complex fieldwork needed to find and extract preserved ancient sub-fossil pine material, but is also affiliated with one of the only laboratories that can measure density parameters from wood. Such density data provide a strong proxy parameter for reconstructing past summer temperatures. Dr Wilson is developing a new tree-ring parameter (Blue Intensity) which is similar to, but cheaper to generate than, the traditional density parameters. Robert and Björn used the Scottish Pine Project to compare and improve these proxy data sources through comparative analysis using the Scottish material. This short visit allowed further fieldwork

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