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Acceptance Speech - December 3, 2009

Commerce Minister Troy Buswell, Chief Scientist Lyn Beazley, fellow finalists, honoured guests, ladies and gentlemen.

I knew if this happened I would be speechless so please allow me to look at my notes.

I feel humbled and absolutely delighted that the Western Australian Science Awards committee has chosen to recognise Mathematics in this way!  I thank you for the award of WA 2009 Scientist of the Year.

To quote Pythagoras from 2500 years ago, Mathematics is the way to understand the universe. When in the 18th century Carl Friedrich Gauss referred to mathematics as "the Queen of the Sciences" he meant (because of the usage of the word "Science" at the time) that Mathematics is the "Queen of all Knowledge".

Then in 1960 when physicist and Nobel Laureate Eugene Wigner spoke of the "unreasonable effectiveness" of Mathematics he was discussing the power and what he called the "sovereign role" of Mathematics in his own scientific discipline Physics.

Mathematics is in the vanguard of all technological and social change.  Mathematics transforms and empowers every discipline it touches. Physics in the last several centuries - Statistics in the mid 20th century, and now Biology and the Medical Sciences are developing the maturity to admit a mathematical foundation also. We live in tremendously exciting times. Mathematics is the intellectual powerhouse that will drive our understanding of climate change, and the many other critical issues of our time.

I am completely thrilled that Western Australia is celebrating Mathematics by making this award. I thank my colleagues at the University of Western Australia for providing such a rich environment, allowing my research and that of my research group, now the Centre for the Mathematics of Symmetry and Computation, to flourish. Also for encouraging us to pursue a wide view of mathematics and its role in society - including fostering strong links with maths teachers in Western Australian schools.

Thanks to my mathematical colleagues and students who share in advancing mathematics in WA.  I feel deep gratitude to my mathematical mentors - especially to Bernhard Neumann for introducing me to mathematics research when I was still an undergraduate student.

I offer warm congratulations to the other finalists Igor Bray and Peter Quinn for Scientist of the Year, and to all those you have been honoured today in the other categories.

I especially thank my husband of 34 years, John Henstridge, for love, support. You are a wonderful partner - sharing in raising our two boys so that we could both follow our career paths in Mathematics.

I pay tribute to two wonderful women who have shown me much love and strength, and who passed away just a few months ago: my mother Queenie without whose determined support I may not have had the chance even to finish high school, and my mother-in-law Marjorie who supported me in such a different path in life than she had known.

I feel very strongly my role as a woman in Science. I rejoiced this year when four women were awarded Nobel Prizes. Last week, I read a joint interview in the journal Science of these four amazing women. A comment by Carol Greider (Nobel Laureate, physiology or medicine, 2009) resonated with me. She was asked for her message to young people, especially young women. It is almost precisely what I have said to various school groups that I'd like to quote her. Carol said 'Do what excites you. Follow your passion. Don't necessarily worry about what obstacles might be there, because there are always ways to overcome them. But the most exciting thing is to be able to do what you love, and just don't let anything stand in the way of that.'

Our endeavours are for the future - our young people, their children. Western Australia needs highly skilled young people in science and mathematics to face future challenges. In particular we need to ensure a strong mathematical education for our young people to underpin their other skills, whether in science, medicine, engineering or technology.

I do not often have much contact with politicians, but forgive me. I take this opportunity. The percentage of Australian students graduating with a maths or stats major is less than half of the OECD average, and demand by Australian employers for maths graduates continues to outstrip the supply. Australia needs to at least double the number of maths graduates it produces to properly equip itself for the future.

So I thank the WA Government for instituting the WA Science Awards that celebrate and encourage the best of Science in Western Australia.