欧美古植物学研究的历史悠久,科学积累丰富,涌现了许多杰出的古植物学家。在欧美地区,也有许多很悠久的旨在推动现代科学技术发展的国家科学院,如:英国皇家学会(成立于1660年)、德国科学院(成立于1652年,German Academy of Sciences at Leopoldina)、法兰西科学院(成立于1666年)、俄罗斯科学院(成立于1724年)、瑞典皇家科学院(成立于1739年)以及美国科学院(成立于1863)等。在我的研究项目中,我有一个工作计划想把这些科学院中的古植物学院士和外籍院士之名单整理出来。这是一项很有趣的研究,但属于吃力不讨好的工作。我已初步将英国皇家学会和美国科学院以及中国科学院的古植物学院士和外籍院士之名单整理出来了,如:《350年来与古植物学有缘的英国皇家学会院士与外籍院士(1660--2010)》,但还有很多工作要做。
Dunkinfield Henry Scott FRS (28 Nov 1854---29 Jan 1934)
Election date: 7 June 1894
1898
Sir Albert Charles SewardFRS (9 Oct 1863---11 April 1941)
Election date: 9 June 1898
1902
Robert Kidston FRS (29 June 1852 –13 July 1924)
Election date: 5 June 1902
1905
Francis Wall Oliver FRS (10 May 1864---14 Sep 1951)
Election date: 11 May 1905
1911
William Henry Lang FRS (12 May 1874—29 August 1960)
4 May 1911
1917
Frederick Ernest Weiss FRS (2 Nov 1865---7 Jan 1953)
Election date: 3 May 1917
1934
Hugh Hamshaw ThomasFRS (29 May 1885—30 June 1962)
Election date: 3 May 1934
1936
Birbal Sahni FRS ( 14 Nov 1891---10 April 1949)
Election date: 7 May 1936
1945
Harry GodwinFRS (9 May 1901---12 August 1985)
Election date: 22 March 1945
1948
Thomas Maxwell Harris FRS (8 Jan 1903 ---1 May 1983)
Election date: 18 March 1948
1976
William Gilbert Chaloner FRS (28 Nov. 1928--)
Election date: 18 March 1976
1996
Dianne Edwards FRS(23 Feb 1942--)
Election date: 14 March 1996
1998
Sir Peter Robert Crane FRS(18 July 1954--)
Election date: 14 May 1998
目前,英国皇家学会只有3位古植物学领域的院士(FRS)[尚无这方面的外籍院士],他们是:William Gilbert Chaloner FRS (1976年当选)、Dianne Edwards FRS(1996年当选)和Sir Peter Robert Crane FRS(1998年当选)。最近,我写信请教Bill Chaloner教授上述问题,他回复如下:
“There are only three people who might be labelled palaeobotanists who are currently fellows of the Royal Society – Sir Peter Crane, Prof Dianne Edwards and myself. Election of any scientist to the Royal Society goes through the same routine – they need to be nominated by two scientists (who of course need to be in that field of work) and they then join a long list of candidates who are assessed by a series of ten committees, made up collectively of about 100 Fellows. Each year, the best candidates are shortlisted, and then opinions of other scientists (some from outside of Britain) are then sought of those shortlisted candidates. Finally, a list of about 50 candidates is put to the Council of the Royal Society, who then recommend some or all of these to a meeting of Fellows, who normally then elect all or most of them.
The procedure for foreign members is similar, but far fewer candidates are nominated – the expectation for attainment of international standing is pretty high for these people. We elected 44 Fellows this year and only 8 foreign members. There are no foreign members at the moment who could be labelled palaeobotanists, and I am not sure that there have ever been any!”
The backbone of the Society is its Fellowship, which is made up of the most eminent scientists, engineers and technologists from the UK and the Commonwealth. Fellows and Foreign Members are elected for life through a peer review process on the basis of excellence in science.
There are approximately 1,450 Fellows and Foreign Members, including more than 75 Nobel Laureates (PDF). Current Fellows include Jocelyn Bell Burnell, Richard Dawkins, Stephen Hawking, Harry Kroto, Tim Berners-Lee, Paul Nurse and John Sulston.
Individuals who are not eligible for election to the Fellowship in the conventional categories may be eligible for election as Honorary Fellows. Seven Honorary Fellows have been elected to date. Before 1996 some Fellows were also elected under the former Statute 12 arrangements.
There are currently five members of the Royal Family who have been elected as Royal Fellows. Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II is our patron.
Fellows are elected through a peer review process that culminates in a vote by existing Fellows. Each year 44 Fellows, 8 Foreign Members and up to 1 Honorary Fellow are elected from a group of over 700 candidates who are proposed by the existing Fellowship. Read the biographies of those elected in 2010.
Once elected, Fellows may use the postnominal FRS after their name, Foreign Members may use the postnominal ForMemRS after their name and Honorary Members may use the postnominal FRS after their name.
Women make up about 5 percent of the Fellowship. Over the last 10 years about 10 percent of new Fellows elected to the Royal Society have been women.
Fellows are invited to fulfil a range of responsibilities for the Society on a voluntary basis . Many are members of awards or grants committees, editorial boards, research panels or other bodies that oversee the work of the Royal Society.
Fellows have the right to stand for election as members of the Council. They may also propose or support the nomination of candidates for election to the Fellowship or Foreign Membership and the nomination of Fellows for election as Officers or members of the Council.
The process of electing Fellows of the Royal Society is highly thorough and results in the election each year of 44 Fellows, 8 Foreign Members and up to 1 Honorary Fellow, from a group of over 700 candidates who are proposed by the existing Fellowship.
According to the Society's statutes, candidates for election to the Fellowship must have made "a substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathematics, engineering science and medical science".
Each candidate is considered on his or her own merits and can be proposed from any sector of the scientific community. Every effort is made to encourage nominations of women candidates and candidates from the emerging disciplines.
Each candidate for the Fellowship or Foreign Membership must be nominated by two Fellows of the Royal Society, who sign a certificate of proposal. The certificate includes a statement of the principal grounds on which the proposal is being made and is available for inspection by other Fellows. The completed certificate of proposal must be received by 30 September each year.
The President of the Royal Society may additionally encourage suggestions for candidates from Vice-Chancellors of universities and Chairs and Chief Executives of Research Councils. These suggestions must also be received by 30 September each year.
The proposing Fellows are responsible for informing the candidate that he or she has been nominated. The proposers must ensure, in consultation with the candidate, that all information relevant to the nomination is up to date.
There is no limit on the number of new nominations made in any year. There were 637 candidates for election as Fellows in 2010.
Once nominated, candidates remain eligible for election for seven years. If not elected within this period, an individual may be proposed as a candidate again after a break of three years and then remains eligible for election for a period of three years. This three year cycle may be repeated without limit.
The Society does not provide details of the identities of nominated candidates to anybody outside the Fellowship, except those individuals consulted in confidence during the refereeing process.
Selection
The Council of the Royal Society oversees the selection process. Two Officers, the Biological Sciences Secretary and the Physical Sciences Secretary, are responsible for the smooth running of this process. The Council appoints ten subject area committees, known as Sectional Committees (PDF), to advise it about the selection of the list of the strongest candidates.
Each candidate is considered by the relevant Sectional Committee on the basis of a full curriculum vitae, details of their research achievements, a list of all their scientific publications and a copy of their 20 best scientific papers. Members of the Sectional Committees vote in early March each year to produce a short-list.
The final list of candidates is confirmed by the Council in April each year and a secret ballot of Fellows is held in May each year. A candidate is elected if he or she secures two-thirds of votes.
Admission
New Fellows are formally admitted to the Society at the formal Admissions Day ceremony in July, when they sign the Charter Book and the Obligation of the Fellows of the Royal Society.
The Obligation reads as follows:
"We who have hereunto subscribed, do hereby promise, that we will endeavour to promote the good of the Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, and to pursue the ends for which the same was founded; that we will carry out, as far as we are able, those actions requested of us in the name of the Council; and that we will observe the Statutes and Standing Orders of the said Society. Provided that, whensoever any of us shall signify to the President under our hands, that we desire to withdraw from the Society, we shall be free from this Obligation for the future."
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2006年英籍华裔科学家杨子恒(Yang Ziheng, Professor of UCL—University College London)当选为FRS。他的个人网页上附载有一份介绍英国皇家学会及FRS的中文资料,内容如下: