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of Biographical Memoirs celebrates a diverse selection of pioneering scientists from a variety of fields. Among the notable highlights below are several examples that illustrate the theme of life beyond the lab, where Fellows have excelled beyond the academic arena in the spheres of science policy, institutional leadership, and government.

A good starting point for the latest volume is the memoir of , a former (2000-2005) and pioneer in theoretical ecology. May’s novel applications of mathematical modelling spanned animal populations and disease dynamics; in the latter case revolutionizing epidemiological modelling with colleague Roy Anderson FRS. Before his term as President of the Royal Society, May also served as the UK government's chief scientific advisor, handling topics from GM crops to the Human Genome Project. May is therefore a prime example of major academic success coupled with public-facing responsibilities – a theme that continues in several of the memoirs.

For over two decades, protozoologist work was dedicated to developing anti-parasitic therapies, resulting in drugs to treat tropical diseases such as leishmaniasis and malaria. In the 60s, he relocated to the Zoological Society of London – initially working out of an office above the Zoo’s Reptile House – where he took up director roles with the Nuffield Institute and ZSL. In his retirement, he also took charge of the Wellcome Museum of Medical Science. – another zoologist – similarly lead a successful research career as an animal behavioural physiologist before becoming a key figure in European science policy, uniquely serving as president of both the German Science Foundation and the Max Planck Society.

Nutritional scientist also championed his field through policy, serving as Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research and establishing the Nutrition Foundation of India in his retirement. Similarly, agricultural innovation was a key project for , who, starting in Kenya, became an international authority in the application of science, engineering and innovation to sustainable development in developing and developed countries.

is a non-life sciences case; his chemical engineering background led him to the forefront in developing health, safety, risk assessment and environmental policies. This experience was called upon by various governmental bodies and resulted in him leading the first international team to Chernobyl after the reactor meltdown in 1986.

Reconstruction of Pholiderpeton scutigerum, an eogyrinid amphibian from the Coal Measures of Yorkshire. This work, published in , was part of Jennifer Clack’s PhD thesis. 

Palaeontologist - one of two female Fellows in the new volume – also went beyond the lab in a sense, with expeditions to Greenland to uncover the secrets of the earliest land vertebrates. Clack’s discoveries reignited interest in the fish-tetrapod evolutionary transition, a field in which she became a world leader.

was one of the great observational astronomers of the 20th century, contributing to our understanding of the origin of the chemical elements and the properties of quasars. From Greenwich to San Diego (where she helped to establish the Hubble Space Telescope), she made pioneering observations with collaborator and husband , and left a lasting legacy for women astronomers.

Flight is also a common theme in the new volume of memoirs. joined the Royal Aircraft Establishment in 1943, where he became a seminal figure in the field of aircraft structural mechanics. applied his RAF experience to the study of bird flight, exploiting his pilot skills to follow migrating birds, developing our understanding of flight behaviour and mechanics.

On the theme of military service and flight, Volume 71 also pays tribute to . Elected Honorary Fellow in 1951, Prince Philip supported and served numerous scientific institutions, including the Royal Academy of Engineering, the World Wildlife Fund, and the Zoological Society of London – highlighting his lifelong interests in engineering, ecology, and the environment.

Memoirs are published as they are ready before being compiled into two volumes per year. or keep an eye on for new memoirs as they appear.

Image credits

1. Top image: Calestous Juma introducing laptops to education officers, Kisumu 2008. Photograph kindly provided by Alison Field-Juma.

2. Volume 71 cover image: Margaret Burbidge in her element in the prime-focus cage of the Lick 3-metre telescope. Image copyright unknown - used with permission from the Burbidge family.

3. Reconstruction of Pholiderpeton scutigerum, from: Clack, Jennifer A. (1987). Pholiderpeton scutigerum Huxley, an amphibian from the Yorkshire coal measures. Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B3181–107