Prince Philip to present RSE awards

Sep 26 2012

The Duke of Edinburgh is to present awards to a group of academics to recognise achievements in their field of expertise.

Prince Philip will hand over the Royal Society of Edinburgh's (RSE) highest accolades at a ceremony in the Scottish capital.

Dr David Milne and Professor Sir Edwin Southern will receive royal medals alongside Professor Gerhard Sessler, who will be awarded the James Clerk Maxwell Award.

The eminent academic institution's medals were introduced by the Queen and mark outstanding achievement in all intellectual fields.

Previous recipients have included the Scottish historian Professor Tom Devine and theoretical physicist Professor Peter Higgs.

Prof Sir Edwin receives his medal for his contribution to the development of biomedical research during the last 20 years while Dr Milne is being recognised for his work as a microelectronics entrepreneur.

The James Clerk Maxwell Award was introduced in 2007 and is presented every year by the RSE and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers to those who create technologies with worldwide benefits for humanity.

The honour is being bestowed on Prof Sessler for helping to revolutionise the modern microphone market twice in his career. He jointly invented the first polymer electric condenser microphone in the 1960s and then again in the 1980s when he co-designed the first micro-electro-mechanical systems condenser microphone. These were introduced to the market in 2002 and are used in mobile phones, laptops, MP3 players and hearing aids.

After the awards, the Duke will open an exhibition called From Maxwell to Higgs.

RSE president Sir John Arbuthnott said he was delighted that the Duke, an honorary fellow of the society, is presenting the awards. "These are our highest accolades. We greatly appreciate the interest HRH has taken in the society over the years and his personal involvement in the presentation of these prestigious awards," he added.