Outstanding scientists join Royal Society

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Three Edinburgh researchers have been elected to a prestigious fellowship in recognition of their exceptional contributions to science.

They are among 51 distinguished scientists announced as Fellows of the Royal Society.The Fellowship is made up of the most eminent scientists, engineers and technologists from the UK and the Commonwealth.Fellows are elected for life through a peer review process and on the basis of excellence in science.

Edinburgh Fellows

The new Fellows, all from the College of Science and Engineering, are:

Professor Jane Hillston, Personal Chair in Quantitative Modelling and Head of School of Informatics.
Professor Andrew Rambaut, Personal Chair in Molecular Evolution, Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences.
Professor Rachel Wood, Personal Chair in Carbonate GeoSciences, School of GeoSciences.

Remarkable contributions

Professor Jane Hillston’s pioneering research combines elements of formal languages from computer science with mathematical modelling. Her work has had widespread applications across biological, ecological and social networks.

Professor Andrew Rambaut’s groundbreaking research tracks, understands and responds to viral epidemics and pandemics. He has led the use of real-time genomic sequencing to track viruses and inform epidemiological responses as an outbreak unfolds. This has proven transformative during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Professor Rachel Wood is a leading palaeobiologist and sedimentologist who integrates field-based observations and geochemical data with computer modelling, to analyse and interpret pivotal transitions in the earth’s systems.