Brian’s Eureka moment

Scientist is back in the charts at number 24

Physicist Brian Cox has been named one of the top 100 most important people in British science.

The 42-year-old former Hulme Grammar School student is Professor of Particle Physics and Royal Society University Research Fellow at the University of Manchester.

He regularly presents TV science programmes and is a UK representative on the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider in Geneva — the world’s most powerful particle experiment which allows scientists to recreate the early conditions of the universe.

The father-of-one, who was born in Chadderton, is also well-known for being the keyboard player in 1990s band D:ream, whose hit “Things Can Only Get Better” was used as a New Labour election anthem.

Professor Cox reached the 24th spot in the list compiled by Eureka magazine, The Times newspaper’s dedicated science magazine.

It said Professor Cox was credited with making physics cool and he had used his fame to campaign for science, becoming one of the most vocal advocates of protecting government funding for science.

James Harding, Times editor, said: “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.”

Taking the top spot is Sir Paul Nurse, whose academic reputation is based on the discovery of genes that control cell division, a process relevant to diseases including cancer.

Also making the list was Professor Stephen Hawking in third spot, Sir David Attenborough in seventh place and Sir James Dyson, inventor of the Dyson cleaner, at number 21.