Professor Barry W. Ninham, AO, FAA

Dr. Ninham is a scientist, researcher, and professor emeritus at Australian National University, where he taught from 1970 until 2000. An expert in surface chemistry and the physical chemistry of molecular biology, he holds a Master of Arts in mathematical physics from the University of Western Australia and earned his Doctor of Philosophy in mathematical physics at the University of Maryland in 1962. Dr. Ninham began his career in 1962 as a professor at the University of Sydney and joined the Australian National University faculty in 1970, where he would continue to teach and serve as head of the Department of Applied Mathematics until 2000. Dr. Ninham’s research includes the discovery of antiviral gases and novel water purification techniques, and he is a founding member of the UNESCO World Commission on the Ethics of Scientific Knowledge and Technology. He has contributed to more than 500 papers and articles across fields and served as a reviewer for France’s Physical Chemistry for Atomic Energy Commission, the ANU Encyclopedia Britannica Committee, and numerous journals. Among his many accomplishments, Dr. Ninham considers his career highlight to have been mentoring more than 75 future full professors, five Royal Society fellows, and ten Australian Academy of Sciences fellows.