2010 Killam Prizes

Professor Ellen Bialystok of York University’s Department of Psychology has changed how we think about language acquisition and literacy, how we teach literacy, and our understanding of the cognitive processes that anchor our learning of a second language. A pre-eminent and internationally known researcher in the field of language, bilingualism and cognitive development, she has developed new methodologies to study both the role of cognitive processes in second language learning and the impact of knowing a second language on cognitive processes.

Official photo of Their Excellencies with the 2010 Killam Prizes recipients.

His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, presented the 2010 Killam Prizes to five accomplished Canadian researchers during a ceremony at Rideau Hall on December 14, 2010. The Governor General delivered a speech: "The Killam Prizes directly relate to one of the pillars I have set out during my mandate as governor general, that of learning and innovation. It is vital in today’s ever-evolving society that we support our post-secondary institutions. Our schools educate the brightest minds, ensuring that the next generation is prepared to assume the leadership of this nation. Our schools also provide us with innovations through important research."

Mr. George T. H. Cooper, Managing Trustee of the Killam Trusts, also delivered a speech. The Killam Prizes were inaugurated in 1981 through a donation by Mrs. Dorothy J. Killam, in memory of her husband, Izaak Walton Killam. The prizes were created to honour eminent Canadian scholars and scientists actively engaged in research, whether in industry, government agencies or universities.

Mr. Joseph L. Rotman, Chair of the Canada Council for the Arts, and Mr. Simon Brault, Vice-Chair of the Canada Council for the Arts, congratulated the recipients of the 2010 Killam Prize, which are awarded annually for the outstanding career achievements of Canadian researchers in health sciences, engineering, humanities, natural sciences and social sciences.

Internationally renowned biomedical imaging researcher Dr. R. Mark Henkelman is using state-of-the-art digital imaging technologies to research human diseases. This is just the latest endeavour by this groundbreaking Canadian scientist in the field of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). He is a professor in the departments of Medical Biophysics and Medical Imaging at the University of Toronto, and senior scientist in Imaging Research with Toronto’s Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.

Dr. Ming Li is one of a handful of internationally acclaimed computer scientists whose research has had major impacts outside his own discipline. His work is now finding new applications in computer science, bioinformatics, philosophy, physics and statistics. He is a professor at the University of Waterloo and also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

Dr. Arthur McDonald’s achievements in the areas of nuclear and particle physics span more than four decades. For the past 20 years, he has been the scientific and operational leader of the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) project, a major experiment which has provided revolutionary insight into the properties of neutrinos and energy generation in the sun’s core.

Professor James Tully is one of the foremost political theorists of our age and has made substantial contributions to scholarly research that have been illuminating and influential. He is working on a new type of public philosophy that links academic research and teaching on local/global problems with creative, co-operative and non-violent citizens responding to these problems on the ground.