The Face of Science (and the Fifty Pound Note)

It is traditional in many countries for banknotes to feature historical figures. But asking the British general public to choose who will adorn the new £50 note seems a risky move; the same British public voted overwhelmingly to name a polar research ship “RSS Boaty McBoatface” (a decision that was overruled – a win for sensibleness – RSS Sir David Attenborough launched in July 2018). Anticipating a certain amount of very British silliness, the Bank of England quickly asserted in its “Think Science!” campaign that nominations must be i) a scientist and ii) deceased, and has firmly stated: “no fictional characters.” And, if all fails, the final decision will be down to a panel of scientists. If you’re not put off by all the sensible rules, you can submit a nomination here.

Hot contenders include Alan Turing and Stephen Hawking, as well as inspirational women whose achievements were somewhat overlooked in their lifetime. Rosalind Franklin, for example, who made crucial contributions to the discovery of DNA’s double helix structure, but missed out on the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. There is also Dorothy Hodgkin – another X-ray crystallography guru – but unlike Franklin, she did win a Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1964, but her efforts weren’t taken seriously by all; a reported headline at the time was: “Oxford housewife wins Nobel” (1).

Personally, I think it would great for a female scientist to be awarded the honor – both to raise the profile of women in science generally (2) but also to act as a visible role model for the younger generation of potential scientists (just a shame about the lack of £50 notes in schoolchildren’s pockets).

The dead scientist appearing on the £50 banknote may only be of passing interest to our many non-UK readers, but I hope you will all once again get involved in our annual celebration of living scientists. The Medicine Maker’s Power List returns in April 2019 to honor 100 professionals involved in advancing the (bio)pharma industry. We welcome nominations from all fields within the world of medicine making – so development scientists, manufacturing gurus, industry advocates, regulators and business leaders alike are all eligible. You have until the end of January to nominate (and I can assure you that Boaty McBoatface will not make the final list).

Stephanie Sutton
Editor

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