I even had a tussle with Richard Dawkins (I think it's my most viewed YouTube clip) in which I accused him of being completely ineffective because he is so sharp of wit in the service of his point of view, and he is so well educated that he may fail to fulfill the directive of his title, which at the time was Professor of the Public Understanding of Science.
A continuing challenge for the environmental health community is to assist in improving public understanding of science and scientific advances directly and indirectly related to the health and well-being of communities of the world.
Awards: MacArthur Fellowship, Pew Fellowship, eight honorary degrees (including one from Princeton University), 2002 Heinz Award in the Environment, 2003 Nierenberg Prize for Science in the Public Interest, 2004 Environmental Law Institute Award (the first scientist to receive this honor) and 2005 American Association for the Advancement of Science's Award for Public Understanding of Science and Technology Source: Oregon State University
As chronicled by Dawkins, author of "Unweaving the Rainbow" and "The Selfish Gene" and the Charles Simonyi Professor of Public Understanding of Science at Oxford University, the pilgrimage begins in the present and proceeds backward in time.
Dr Maurice Lock at Bangor's school of biological sciences, who introduced Haines for his honorary degree, said: ``He has made a very significant contribution to the public understanding of science.
As the Charles Simonyi Professor for the Public Understanding of Science, Du Sautoy is known for his work popularizing mathematics, and has been named one of the leading scientists in the United Kingdom.
Yesterday, the University of Oxford announced that the mathematician would take up its prestigious Simonyi professorship for the public understanding of science, the post vacated last month by the biologist Dawkins after more than a decade.
