Four McGill researchers took home awards from the Association francophone pour le savoir’s 63rd annual gala, held on October 11, 2007.
Donald L. Smith, James McGill Professor in the Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and Chair of the Department of Plant Science, received the Prix Michel-Jurdant for his work in environmental science. Smith is the scientific director of the Green Crop Network, which unites leading Canadian scientists in the quest to develop crops that reduce carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide. Smith’s recent work focuses on increasing the sequestration of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into crop plants, a crucial tool for greenhouse gas management.
Physics professor Victoria Kaspi received the Prix Urgel-Archambault. In 2005, Kaspi and her team discovered the fastest-rotating pulsar known to science; the findings promise to yield important new information about the nature of one of the most mysterious forms of matter in the universe.
Internationally renowned for her work on regulating cerebral circulation, Édith Hamel received the Prix Adrien-Pouliot. Hamel is a neuroscientist at the Montreal Neurological Institute; by understanding the mechanisms of blood flow, she hopes to aid in the development of new drugs to decrease vascular head pain.
The Concours de vulgarisation de la recherche de l’Acfas recognized the work of Marie-Ève Brault. Brault is an anatomy and cell biology doctoral student at the Lady Davis Institute at the Sir Mortimer B. Davis Jewish General Hospital. In January 2008, her paper on the enzyme telomerase as it relates to aging and cancer appeared in the newspaper Le Soleil.
Founded in 1923, Acfas is a Quebec not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting scientific activity, stimulating research and disseminating knowledge.