C.V. Prof. Sheila Rowan Contact: Director Institute for Gravitational Research (IGR) Tel: 0141 330 4701 School of Physics and Astronomy Fax: 0141 330 6833 University of Glasgow email:[email protected] Glasgow, G12 8QQ
Education: 1991-95 Univ. of Glasgow PhD (‘Aspects of lasers for the illumination of interferometric gravitational wave detectors’) 1987-91 Univ. of Glasgow BSc (Honours, Physics)
Appointments: 2016 - Chief Scientific Adviser (3 days/week secondment) Scottish Government 2009 - Director, Institute for Gravitational Research University of Glasgow 2006 - Professor of Experimental Physics University of Glasgow 2003-06 Reader in Physics University of Glasgow 2001-03 Staff Scientist (Research Associate) (75%) Stanford University Research Fellow (25%) University of Glasgow 1998-01 Postdoctoral Research Assistant (75%) Stanford University (Split-appointment) (25%) University of Glasgow 1995-98 Research Assistant University of Glasgow 1995 Visiting Postdoctoral Scholar Stanford University
Honours, awards and prizes: Personal recipient 2019 The 29th Elizabeth Spreadbury Lecture University College London 2018 The Sackler Lecture IoA Cambridge Honorary Fellowship Institute of Physics, UK Honorary Degree (DSc) University of Strathclyde Honorary Degree (DSc) Robert Gordon’s University The Baird of Bute Innovation Award The Baird of Bute Society The Founders Day Lecture University of Bath 2017 The St Andrews Day Lecture, Brussels Scotland Europa The John Porter Memorial Lecture IoP Liverpool The (Inaugural) Ailsa Sparkes Memorial Lecture Edinburgh The Higgs Lecture Kings College London Suffrage Science Award for Engineering and Physical Science LIMS/Medical Research Council 2016 The Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies Annual Lecture DIAS The Kelvin Medal Royal Phil. Society of Glasgow The Hoyle Medal and Prize Institute of Physics, UK Innovation Award: Scientific Breakthrough Wired Magazine/Audi The President’s Medal (Shared with academic colleagues in Scotland) Royal Society of Edinburgh The Helen Sawyer Hogg Distinguished Visitor (triennial award) Univ. of Toronto, Canada Research Project of the Year (Co-recipient, with Strathclyde Univ) Glasgow Herald HE awards 2015 The Cockcroft and Walton Lecturer, India (multi-state lecture tour) Indian Physics Assoc./UK IoP The (Inaugural) Leon Davies Lecture and Medal Astronomical Society of Glasgow 2014 AIP Women in Physics Lecturer (multi-state lecture tour) Australian Institute of Physics 2012 President, Physics and Astronomy Section, British Science Association 2011 Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) HM Queen Elizabeth II 2010 Royal Society-Wolfson Research Merit Award The Royal Society/Wolfson Trust 2006 The John Earnshaw Memorial Lecture Queens Univ. Belfast 2005 Phillip Leverhulme Prize for Astronomy and Astrophysics The Leverhulme Trust 1993 Thomson Prize in experimental physics (Postgraduate) University of Glasgow 1991 Thomson Prize in experimental physics (Undergraduate) University of Glasgow 1988 James Black Medal (Best Student, Geology) University of Glasgow
1 Honours, awards and prizes as a member of the LIGO Scientific Collaboration: 2017 The Einstein Medal Albert Einstein Society, Bern Princess of Asturias Award for Technical Princess of Asturias and Scientific Research Foundation, Spain The RAS Group Achievement Award Royal Astronomical Society Bruno Rossi Prize American Astronomical Society 2016 Breakthrough of the Year Physics World Magazine Gruber Cosmology Prize Gruber Foundation, USA Special Breakthrough Prize Breakthrough Prize Board
Fellowship of Learned Societies: Fellow of the Royal Society of London (2018); Fellow of the American Physical Society (2012); Royal Society of Edinburgh (2008); Institute of Physics (2006) Royal Astronomical Society (2006)
Positions on National and International Strategy and Advisory Committees; selected examples include 2019 - Chair, Advanced Virgo+ International Review Committee; Chair UK National Quantum Computing Centre Project Board; Member VisNET- Advisory Board (EPSRC Inclusion Matters) 2018 - Chair, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee, STFC; Co-Chair, STEM Policy Advisory Group, Scottish Government; Member, STFC Council 2015 - Chair (re-elected 2017) of the Gravitational Waves International Committee (GWIC) – IUPAP WG11 2017 Member, Review Committee, IMPRS AEI Hannover and Golm; Co-Chair, STEM Strategy Reference Group, Scottish Government 2016 - UK CSA Champion for Quantum Technologies; Ex-officio Member, Scottish Science Advisory Council; Chair, Scottish Government Science Leadership Network for scientists in Government; Chair, Scottish Science Centre CEO network; Member, Science Advisory Network, National Museum of Scotland; 2015 Chair, Advisory panel, Physics Department, University of Liverpool 2014 - Member of APPIC (Astro-Particle Physics International Committee) (IUPAP WG 10) 2013 - 16 Member of the LIGO Programme Advisory Committee (advising the LIGO Director) 2011 - 12 Member of the Science Board of STFC 2010 - 12 Member of the Aspera/ApPEC Science Advisory Committee 2009 - 11 Deputy Chair, STFC Science Committee for PPAN 2009 - Member of the Gravitational Waves International Committee 2007 - 10 Member of the GWIC Roadmap committee 2007 - 09 Member of the STFC Science Committee for Particle Physics, Astronomy and Nuclear Physics (PPAN)
Positions of responsibility in collaborative research: LIGO Scientific Collaboration: Member of the: LIGO Program Committee (2018 - ); MoU review Committee (2016); Detection Committee (2015-); MoU review Committee (2015 - 16) Election and Membership Committee (2013 - 16); LIGO Oversight Committee (2012 - 14 ); Election and Membership Committee (Chair) (2010 - 13); Advanced Detector committee (2006 -); Publication Policy committee (2006 - 09) Other posts: 2009 - Executive Board of the Stanford-Scotland Photonics Science Bridges Project 2008 - Member of the GEO Executive Committee 2008 - 11 Member of the Governing Council, FP7 ‘Einstein Telescope’ Design Study 2007 - 09 Member of the Governing Council, EC Framework 6 ILIAS 2004 - 09 Member of Executive Committee EC Framework 6 ILIAS ‘Gravitational Wave Networking’ project 2004 - 09 Member of Steering Committee EC Framework 6 ILIAS ‘STREGA’ project
Services for learned societies: 2019 Chair, Isaacson Prize Committee, American Physical Society; Chair, Royal Society Young People’s book prize 2018 Member of the Isaacson prize committee American Physical Society 2015 - RSE Physics, Astronomy and Electrical Engineering Sectional Committee; RSE Physics, Astronomy Strategic Framework Committee 2014 - 15 Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) Post-referendum steering Committee; 2010 - 14 Institute of Physics (IoP) Awards Committee 2010 - 13 Council (Trustee) of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE); 2 2010 - 13 RSE Fellowship Committee; 2009 - 12 RSE Grants Committee; 2009 - 10 RSE Physics, Astronomy and Electrical Engineering Sectional Committee; 2005 - 08 IoP Gravitational Physics Committee; IoP ‘Women in Physics’ Visiting Panel (2005)
Research grants: PI or Co-I on ~£39M since 2003: selected examples include: 2016 PI, STFC “Investigations in Gravitational Radiation. £4,360,740; Co-I, STFC “UK Involvement in the Operation of Advanced LIGO” £387,674 2014 Co-I, EPSRC “UK Quantum Technology Hub in Quantum Enhanced Imaging” £1,126,000; PI, (STFC) ‘Investigations in Gravitational Radiation’ £52,000; PI, EU FP7 ‘GraWiton’ Initial Training Network, £230,127 2013 PI, (STFC) ‘Investigations in Gravitational Radiation’ £96,311; PI, (STFC) ‘Investigations in Gravitational Radiation’ £4,367,358 2012 PI, EU FP7 ‘ELiTES-ET-LCGT Telescopes: Exchange of Scientists’ £21,840; PI, (STFC) ‘Investigations in Gravitational Radiation’ £3,135,408
Invitations to talk at meetings: Between 4 and 10 per year – selected examples include: 2019 SPIE Optics and optoelectronics, Prague; Public Awareness of Research Infrastructures, Harwell 2018 EREP 2018 (Spanish/Portuguese meeting on Relativity), Spain; Conference on Precision Electromagnetic Measurements, Paris; Winton Symposium, Cambridge 2017 12th E. Amaldi Meeting; Pasadena, International School of Science Journalism, Erice; Tri-partite (UK- EU Russia) Quantum Technologies Conference, Russian Embassy, UK 2016 12th Appleton Space Conference RAL, Harwell; IAU Symposium on black hole astrophysics, Slovenia; European Science Open Forum , Manchester; 1st ET-LIGO symposium, Florence 2015 11th Conf. on Cavity Spectroscopy, Boulder; Gravitational Waves Advanced Detector Workshop, Alaska 2014 Shanghai Forum on Gravitational Waves, Shanghai; GR@99 Bad Honnef, Germany
Invited research colloquia. Recent examples include: 2018: JILA, Boulder Colorado; New York University, USA; Univ of Bristol 2017: Technical University of Dresden, Germany; University of St Andrews 2016: Dunlap Institute, University of Toronto, Canada; DESY, Berlin and Zeuthen, Germany; Univ. of Bath 2015: Imperial College, London; Heriot-Watt University 2014: University of Adelaide Physics Dept., Australia; Directors Colloquium, RSPE Australian National Univ.
Scientific Organising Comm., recent examples 2019 GR22/Amaldi 11, Spain (Chair, Amaldi11); Texas Symposium, Portsmouth 2018 Dawn IV meeting, Amsterdam 2017 Dawn III meeting, Syracuse, NY; GWADW Australia; 12th E. Amaldi Meeting, Caltech; 8th Einstein Telescope meeting, Birmingham 2016 Gravitational Waves Advanced Detector Workshop, Elba; 1st ET-LIGO meeting, Florence 2015 11th E. Amaldi Meeting, Korea 2014 Gravitational Waves Advanced Detector Workshop, Takayama
Public Understanding of Science. Selected examples include: 2018 Fort Collins book Festival; Cheltenham Science Festival, Cambridge University Scientific Society, 2017 AAAS, Boston; Edinburgh Science Festival, in conversation with Marcus Chown 2016 TEDx- CERN; Public Lecture, The Royal Institution; Public Lecture, University of Toronto; Public Lecture, IAU Symposium, Slovenia The Royal Philosophical Society of Glasgow; Public Lecture, University College Dublin/DIAS; RSE/CaSE Lecture, Royal Society of Edinburgh;; Society for Popular Astronomy, London; IET/Leonardo, Edinburgh 2015 Dark Sky Scotland Observatory 2014 Public lectures: Sydney Observatory, Univ. of Western Australia, Swinburne Univ., Melbourne, Univ. of Tasmania, plus talks to schools across Australia as AIP Women in Physics Lecturer.
Research Interests: Development of aspects of detectors of gravitational radiation including optics, lasers, coatings and opto-mechanical systems for precisions measurement; author of more than 200 papers in refereed journals. 3