President
Prof. Tony Wilson Hon FRMS, University of Oxford, UK
Tony Wilson is President of the Society as well as being General Editor of the Journal of Microscopy. His research in optical microscopy has the overall aim of developing a variety of high resolution imaging techniques for applications in areas ranging from the life sciences to industrial metrology. His main interest lies in the theory and implementation of scanning optical microscopes and, in particular, the development of and applications of confocal microscopy. He and his colleagues have introduced a number of diverse techniques into confocal microscopy such as fibre optics, laser feedback, extended depth-of-focus imaging, fast aberration free optical focussing and adaptive optics. The structured illumination technique as other ‘light efficient’ methods of obtaining optical sectioning have been commercialised from his laboratory. He is Professor of Engineering Science and a Fellow of Hertford College at the University of Oxford. Professor Tony Wilson is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Microscopical Society and Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in recognition of his seminal contributions to confocal microscopy, arguably one of the most significant advances in light microscopy in the last century.
Vice-President and International Secretary
Dr Paul Monaghan, CSIRO, Australia
Paul Monaghan is Leader, Advanced Light Microscopy within the AAHL Biosecurity Microscopy Facility (ABMF). Incorporated within the AAHL Collaborative Biosecurity Research Facility (ACBRF), the ABMF is a specialist microscopy service and a Linked Laboratory of the Australian Microscopy & Microanalysis Research Facility (AMMRF). Paul joined CSIRO in mid-2009. Prior to this, he worked at the Institute for Animal Health (IAH) at Pirbright in England for 10 years, setting up the IAH Bioimaging Group. This group used a range of microscopical approaches to investigate pathogen-host interactions both in vivo and in vitro. His main research interest centres on the ways viruses subvert host cell organelles for their replication. Paul has been closely involved with the organisation of MICROSCIENCE for many years, and is currently Vice-President and International Secretary of the RMS.
Vice- President
Prof. Mark Rainforth, University of Sheffield, UK
Mark Rainforth is the Director of the Sorby Nano Investigation Centre in the Kroto Research Institute at the University of Sheffield. Mark uses a range of techniques (aberration corrected TEM, Focused Ion Beam microscopy, Electron Backscattered Diffraction etc) to investigate material microstructure, in particular, interfaces and surfaces in ceramics and metals. He has published widely, including a text book ‘Ceramic Microstructures’. He has held prestigious fellowships (Leverhulme-Royal Academy of Engineering Senior Research Fellowship and the Nuffield Science Foundation Research Fellowship), and won several medals for his research (e.g. the Rosenhain Medal of the Institute of Materials, Mining and Minerals, Bronze Medal of the Tribology Group of the Institute of Mechanical Engineers). Mark first became involved in the RMS over 20 years ago through the Yorkshire Area Microscope Users Group and through teaching on the RMS Spring School in Electron Microscopy. ‘The shear breadth and depth of the society never ceases to amaze me. The dedication and experience of its members has ensured that all events the society organises are top quality. I have been involved in the society over the last 20 years and have benefited hugely’.
Executive Honorary Secretary
Prof. Chris Hawes, Oxford Brookes University, UK
Chris Hawes is Professor of Plant Cell Biology and Research Director of the School of Life Sciences at Oxford Brookes University. He runs a research group looking at the structure and function of the higher plant secretory pathway concentrating on the endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi apparatus. Much of the work is based around the expression of fluorescent proteins and confocal live cell imaging, although more recently the group have been using EM tomography to look at Golgi biogenesis. Chris also teaches undergraduate courses in Cell Biology, run the School BioImaging suite and manages a small microscopy consultancy. Chris has been a member of the RMS for many years and has been on the organising committee of the last 5 International Botanical Microscopy meetings and sat on various MICROSCIENCE committees. Chris is also a Scientific Editor of the Journal of Microscopy.
Honorary Treasurer
Mr Leslie Stump, Microm Limited
Leslie Stump is current Honorary Treasurer of the RMS. In the mid-sixties Leslie began his career working in the Department of Metallurgy at the University of Oxford. He then moved to the Physics Department at Rice University in Houston, Texas and then to the Department of Metallurgy at the University of Toronto before returning to Oxford to the Department of Zoology. He remained there for six years continuing to be involved in both light and electron microscopy. Leaving Zoology in the mid-seventies his sales career began in the microscope division of British American Optical and he has remained in the microscopy and imaging business to date.
Honorary Secretary Science (Biological)
Dr Peter O'Toole, University of York, UK
Peter O'Toole heads the Imaging and Cytometry Labs within the Technology Facility at the University of York which includes an array of confocal microscopes, flow cytometers and electron microscopes. Peter gained his PhD in the Cell Biophysics Laboratory at the University of Essex and has been involved in many aspects of fluorescence imaging. Research is currently focused on both technology and method development of novel probes and imaging modalities. He has ongoing collaborations with many leading microscopy and cytometry companies and his group also provides research support to many academics and commercial organisations. Peter is also heavily involved with teaching microscopy and flow cytometry which includes organising and teaching on both the RMS Light Microscopy Summer School and the RMS Practical Flow Cytometry courses.
Honorary Secretary Science (Physical)
Dr Debbie Stokes, University of Cambridge, UK
Debbie Stokes has been a member of the Executive Committee since 2005. This role includes representing the different RMS Section Committees to help shape the annual programme of scientific meetings, conferences and courses run by the RMS team as well as actively participating in the strategic planning of the Society. Debbie is Conference Co-chair of MICROSCIENCE and Congress Chair of the European Microscopy Congress in 2012, which brings with it membership of the EMS Executive Board. Debbie obtained a PhD in physics at the Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge University, and in 1999 was awarded a Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Research Fellowship to continue investigating electron emission and charge-related phenomena in insulating materials and the stability of hydrated specimens in the environmental SEM (ESEM). More recently, Debbie worked on new applications and methodologies for focused ion beam scanning electron microscopy (FIB SEM). She is interested in all kinds of electron microscopy, and is the author of a recent Wiley-RMS book entitled Principles and Practice of Variable Pressure/Environmental Scanning Electron Microscopy (VP-ESEM).
Honorary Secretary (Education)
Dr Susan Anderson, University of Nottingham, UK
Susan Anderson has been involved in microscopy for over 20 years. She established and led the Advanced Microscopy Unit at the University of Nottingham for ten years and is especially interested in electron microscopy, confocal laser scanning microscopy and correlative microscopy. She joined the RMS Materials Science Section in 2006 and helped to organise several symposia on the use of microscopy in biomaterials and tissue engineering. She was delighted to be invited to be the Honorary Secretary for Education and Outreach in 2009 and has established a Committee of talented and enthusiastic microscopists and educationalists to drive forward the strategy of the newly established Outreach and Education section. Susan has been involved in Education for many years. She has been a volunteer at her local primary school and has encouraged many primary and secondary school visits to the Advanced Microscopy Unit over the years. In addition, she is involved with a creative science programme which encourages creativity in STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and maths) in a space managed by and for young people. Through this she has been lucky to be involved in working with many primary and secondary schools to improve science provision.
