Lifetime of mentoring earns professor nod from Nature
[img_inline align=”right” src=”http://padnws01.mcmaster.ca/images/chriswood1.jpg” caption=”After 34 years of mentoring the scientists of the future, Chris Wood, professor biology, has been honoured with the lifetime achievement award for mentoring in science, awarded by the renowned publication Nature.”]
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After 34 years of mentoring the scientists of the future, Chris Wood, a professor of
biology
at McMaster, has been honoured for his "pure unadulterated love for research" and his
commitment to training the next generation of environmental scientists with the
prestigious lifetime achievement award for mentoring in science, awarded by the
renowned publication Nature.
Wood is one of the most highly-recognized scientists in the field of comparative
physiology. His staggering volume of work, consisting of more than 535 published
papers,
has been cited more than 16,000 times. It's his latest citation however, that means the
most to him.
"I am deeply honoured and humbled by this award," said Wood, who was recognized at
the
Canadian Association for Graduate Studies annual meeting in Toronto this past
weekend. "I
have been blessed with superb grad students and post-doctoral fellows throughout my
career, and a University and funding system (NSERC) that are highly supportive of
research
training."
As part of the award, Wood will be given a prize of $10,000, a substantial portion of
which
he plans to donate to the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre in B.C., where he works with
students and post-doctoral fellows most summers.
"Chris' greatest attribute is his enthusiasm, which alone generates excitement, interest
and
energy in the lab," said Derek Alsop, one of Wood's post-doctoral fellows. "He always
takes the time to teach, to listen and to guide each person that works in his lab."
Wood's research focuses on fish physiology, aquatic toxicology and environmental
regulations. He is one of the country's most renowned researchers in a number of
areas,
including the effects of metal and acid pollution on fish. Of the many post-doctoral
fellows
and graduate students whom Wood has attracted to his lab, 38 now hold positions as
university faculty members, while others are government or industry scientists.
"What sets Chris apart as a mentor are the intangibles," wrote award nominators
Michael
Wilkie, at Wilfrid Laurier University, and Kathleen Gilmour, at the University of Ottawa.
"Chris lives, breathes and does science, right in the lab among his students, creating
an
"invisible energy" that is absorbed by his students, inspiring them to work harder, learn
more and possess a healthy enthusiasm for their research."
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