2014 NMI awards announced

As part of World Metrology Day, which commemorates the anniversary of the signing of the Metre Convention on 20 May 1875, Parliamentary Secretary for Industry Bob Baldwin has announced the winners of this year’s National Measurement Institute (NMI) awards.

The NMI Prize and the Barry Inglis Medal are awarded annually to acknowledge and celebrate outstanding achievement in measurement research and excellence in practical measurements in Australia. The 2014 NMI Prize was awarded to Dr Douglas Little, while the Barry Inglis Medal went to Dr Bruce Forgan.

Dr Little, a scientist at Macquarie University, has conducted groundbreaking measurement techniques developed to assess the potential of spider webs to be used for in vivo medical devices. Baldwin said Dr Little’s efforts to measure very accurately the refractive index of spider silks resulted in a 20-fold improvement on previous work.

“While this sounds a little like science fiction, Dr Little’s research opens the potential of using spider silks in future bio-inspired materials, for example as bio-compatible ‘scaffolding’ for new skin tissue,” Baldwin said.

Dr Forgan, of the Bureau of Meteorology, was awarded for his instrumental role in the establishment of the Cape Grim Baseline Air Pollution Station on Tasmania’s north-eastern tip. Baldwin described Cape Grim as “the ‘jewel in the crown’ of the World Meteorological Organization’s Global Atmosphere Watch program”.

“Accurate and reliable measurements are fundamental and critical to the Bureau’s work and provide realistic assessments of whether any observed atmospheric changes are real,” Dr Forgan added.

He concluded, “Each award recipient is an exemplary ambassador for the real-world application of measurements and techniques that are not only fit for purpose but are world-class innovations as well.”