HKIAS News
In memory of Professor Sir Colin Blakemore
28 June 2022
With great sadness, we announce the passing of a world-renowned neuroscientist, Professor Sir Colin Blakemore, the Senior Fellow of Hong Kong Institute for Advanced Study (HKIAS) and Yeung Kin Man Chair Professor of Neuroscience of City University of Hong Kong (CityU). Professor Sir Blakemore passed away peacefully in Oxford, surrounded by his daughters.
Professor Sir Blakemore was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1944. After studying medicine at Cambridge and completing a PhD at Berkeley, he worked in the medical schools of Cambridge and Oxford for more than 40 years, and then led an interdisciplinary group studying human perception at the School of Advanced Study in London.
He was the President of the British Science Association, the British Neuroscience Association, the Physiological Society and the Royal Society of Biology. He was a member of 12 scientific academies, including the Royal Society, the Academy of Medical Sciences, and the Chinese Academy of Engineering. In addition, he was a frequent broadcaster and writer for the UK national media. He joined the HKIAS as a Senior Fellow in 2017, and was appointed as the Yeung Kin Man Chair Professor of Neuroscience of CityU in 2019.
His research has concerned many aspects of vision, early brain development and plasticity of the cerebral cortex. Professor Sir Blakemore’s passion for science extended beyond his academic achievements, and his life was marked by a consistent commitment to education and understanding of science. He was honored for his distinguished achievements with prestigious awards from many academies and societies, including the Ralph Gerard Prize (the highest award of the Society for Neuroscience), and the Ferrier Prize from the Royal Society. In 2014, he received a knighthood for services to scientific research, policy, and outreach.
A highly respected member of the HKIAS, Professor Sir Blakemore lived to serve, and we benefited a great deal from his many scientific insights over the years.
We will greatly miss him, and we would like to offer our sincerest and most heartfelt condolences to his family.
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