George Ellis

Research interests:

• General relativity; cosmology; science policy; top down causation, and its relation to brain functioning

Degrees:

• B.Sc.(Hons) (Cape Town), B.Com.(Hons) (Cape Town);
• Ph.D. (Cantab).

Past Positions:

• Lecturer, DAMTP (Cambridge)
• Professor of Cosmic Physics, SISSA (Trieste)
• Visiting Professor: Texas University, University of Chicago, Hamburg University, Boston University, University of Alberta, London University.
• Visiting Fellow Commoner, Trinity College, Cambridge from April to September, 2013
• Visiting Professor Physics Department, Oxford University 2016-2018
• Visiting Professor of Complex Systems, Said School of Business, Oxford 2019-2021

Honours/Positions:

• National Research Foundation (NRF) A-rating.
• Fellow and Past President of the Royal Society of South Africa (RSSA).
• Founder Member and past Member of Council of Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf).
• Past President of the International Society for General Relativity and Gravitation.
• Fellow of the University of Cape Town.
• Honorary Degrees: Haverford College, Natal University, London University (Queen Mary).
• Herschel Medal (RSSA), Achievement Award (Claude Harris Leon Foundation),
• Gold Medal: South African Association for the Advancement of Science (S2A3),
• Gold Medal (S A Mathematical Society).
• Member of the drafting team of the DACST Green Paper on Science and Technology after President Mandela’s election, which lead to the White Paper.
• Past Member of the InterAcademy Council (Amsterdam), (2001-2005).
• Joint Editor in Chief of the International Journal of General Relativity and Gravitation (2006 -2011). Please see here a nice paper on reviewing.
• Star of South Africa Medal presented by President Nelson Mandela (1999).
• 2004 Templeton Prize winner (presented by Prince Philip at Buckingham Palace).
• Fellow of the Third World Academy of Science (TWAS), 2004.
• NSTF 2004 award for an individual contribution to Science and Technology over a lifetime.
• Academy of Science of South Africa Science-for-Society gold medal (2005).
• Order of Mapungubwe (Silver) conferred by President Thabo Mbeki (2006).
• FRS (Fellow of the Royal Society, London): inducted July 2007.
• Honorary Fellow, Royal Society of South Africa (2008)
• Honorary Degree, University of Cape Town (December, 2009) [citation]
• South African Institute of Physics De Beers Gold Medal (September 2010)
• Civic honours awarded by the City of Cape Town (2011)
• Awarded Fellowship of SA Institute of Physics (2012).
• Awarded Fellowship of the International Society on General Relativity and Gravitation at GR20 (2013). Citation . "For his contributions to the theory of the large-scale structure of spacetime and to relativistic cosmology, and for service to the Society."
• Honorary degree, University Paris Sorbonne and University Pierre et Marie Curie (2016)
• Honorary Degree Rhodes University, April 2019
• Lemaître Prize of the University of Louvain, May 2019

Teaching and research interests:

• General Relativity theory and its application to the study of the large-scale structure of the universe (cosmology).
• The history and philosophy of cosmology.
• Complex systems and emergence of complexity.
• The human brain and behaviour.
• Science policy, developmental issues.
• Science and mathematics education.
• The relation of science to religion.