McDonald, Wilson receive Order of Canada

McDonald, Wilson receive Order of Canada

By Communications Staff

May 15, 2016

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Two members of the Queen’s community were among those recognized by Governor General David Johnston during the Order of Canada investiture ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Friday, May 13.

Arthur McDonald (Physics, Engineering Physics and Astronomy), winner of the 2015 Nobel Prize in Physics, was promoted to Companion of the Order of Canada while Ruth Wilson (Family Medicine) was named Member of the Order of Canada.

The honour of Companion “recognizes national pre-eminence or international service or achievement. The honour of Member ‘recognizes outstanding contributions at the local or regional level or in a special field of activity.”

The following are the citations for Professor Emeritus McDonald and Dr. Wilson:

Arthur B. McDonald, C.C.

Thanks to Arthur McDonald, we have solved one of the mysteries of our solar system. In what is now a Nobel Prize-winning breakthrough accomplished two kilometres underground at the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory, he steered a major experiment that conclusively demonstrated that a class of solar particles undergoes transformation on its way to Earth. This finding has shed light on the very nature of matter in our universe, and spawned a range of new particle physics research. Also a professor emeritus at Queen’s University, he has been a prominent ambassador of Canadian science through his service on advisory committees and as a keynote speaker at conferences the world over.

Ruth Wilson, C.M.

Ruth Wilson has been a lifelong leader in family medicine. After a decade as a rural physician in underserved communities in Newfoundland, Ontario and British Columbia, she became a professor and chair of the Department of Family Medicine at Queen’s University. She then led the creation of family health teams in Ontario, which resulted in improved patient access to primary care. She has also been influential at the national level as president of both the College of Family Physicians of Canada and of the North American region of the World Organization of Family Doctors.          

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