Culham director in "The Times" list of top 100 scientists

8 Oct 2010 - Nick Holloway, Culham Centre for Fusion Energy
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Steven Cowley is one of the UK's most influential scientists, says "The Times."
The Times has named Culham Centre for Fusion Energy's Director, Professor Steve Cowley, as one of the UK's most influential scientists.
 
Professor Cowley joins the likes of Stephen Hawking, David Attenborough and Richard Dawkins in the Eureka 100 Science List, which according to The Times, aims to "identify the most important and interesting people in British science." Those on the list "are pushing back the boundaries of scientific understanding, transforming our lives through innovation and changing our attitudes to science, each other and the world."
 
Professor Cowley's profile states: "Cowley has shown an appreciation for fusing global talent as well as atomic nuclei...In his work as an advocate of fusion, Cowley has also provided a compelling argument for why government funding must increase if the race to provide carbon-free fuel is to be won in time."
 
The Eureka list was compiled with the help of heads of universities, research bodies, businesses, scientific societies and government institutions. The final selection was judged by a panel including William Waldegrave (Chairman of the Science Museum) and Evan Harris (former Liberal Democrat science spokesman and Oxford West & Abingdon MP).
 
Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE), near Abingdon, is one of the world's leading fusion energy research laboratories. It is home to the UK's fusion program, most notably the MAST (Mega Amp Spherical Tokamak) experiment. It also hosts the world's largest fusion device, JET (Joint European Torus), which CCFE operates for its European partners under the European Fusion Development Agreement.

The research at Culham is developing nuclear fusion—the power that keeps the Sun burning—as a new, cleaner form of energy for use in future power stations.