Robert McCredie "Bob" May, Baron May of Oxford, OM, AC, FRS (born 8 January 1936 in Australia) is a cross-bench member of the British House of Lords and was President of the Royal Society from 2000 to 2005. He was made a life peer in 2001 and appointed to the Order of Merit in 2002. For other Orders see Order of Merit (disambiguation). ... The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established by Queen Elizabeth II on February 14, 1975 for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service. The Order includes three classes in general and military divisions, in descending order of... The Fellowship of the Royal Society is composed of 1292 of the most distinguished scientists from the United Kingdom, other Commonwealth countries and the Republic of Ireland. ... January 8 is the 8th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1936 (MCMXXXVI) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... A cross-bencher is a member of the British House of Lords who is not aligned to any particular party. ... This article is about the British House of Lords. ... President is a title held by many leaders of organizations, companies, universities, and countries. ... The premises of the Royal Society in London. ... In the United Kingdom, Life Peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles may not be inherited (those whose titles are inheritable are known as hereditary peers). ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... For other Orders see Order of Merit (disambiguation). ... 2002 (MMII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

A physicist by training, he won the Crafoord Prize for "pioneering ecological research in theoretical analysis of the dynamics of populations, communities and ecosystems" and the Robert MacArthur Award in 1984. He holds professorships in the Department of Zoology, University of Oxford and in Imperial College London. The Crafoord Prize was established by Holger Crafoord, the inventor of the artificial kidney and his wife Anna-Greta Crafoord in 1980. ... The University of Oxford, located in the city of Oxford, England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... Imperial College is one of the colleges of the University of London (although negotiations with regard to its withdrawal from the University have begun) and primarily focuses on science, engineering and medicine, complemented by a business school. ...

May received his Ph.D. in theoretical physics from University of Sydney in 1959. He then worked at Harvard University and the University of Sydney before developing an interest in animal population dynamics and the relationship between complexity and stability in natural communities. He moved to Princeton University in 1973 and to Oxford and the Imperial College in 1988. May was able to make major advances in the field of population biology through the application of mathematical techniques. His work played a key role in the development of theoretical ecology through the 1970s and 1980s. He also applied these tools to the study of disease and to the study of biodiversity. Doctor of Philosophy (Ph. ... Theoretical physics is physics that employs mathematical models and abstractions rather than experimental processes. ... The University of Sydney The University of Sydney, established in 1850, is the oldest university in Australia, and it is located in Sydney, the capital city of the state of New South Wales. ... 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Harvard University is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA and a member of the Ivy League. ... Population dynamics is the study of marginal and long-term changes in the numbers, individual weights and age composition of individuals in one or several populations, and biological and environmental processes influencing those changes. ... Community ecology is the study of the distribution, abundance, demography, and interactions between populations coexisting species. ... Princeton University, located in Princeton, New Jersey, is the fifth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Theoretical ecology refers to several intellectual traditions. ... Biodiversity or biological diversity is the diversity of and in living nature. ...

Between 1995 and 2000, May was Chief Scientific Advisor to the UK Government and head of the Office of Science and Technology. The Office of Science and Technology is a non-ministerial agency of the British government, headed by the chief scientific adviser, currently Sir David King. ...

In 1996, May asked Ignobel to stop awarding prizes to British scientists on the basis that this could lead to treating a proper research less seriously by the public. See criticism of Ignobel. The Ig Nobel Prizes are a parody of the Nobel Prizes and are given each year in early fall — a week or two before the recipients of the genuine Nobel Prizes are announced — for ten achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think. ... The Ig Nobel Prizes are a parody of the Nobel Prizes and are given each year in early fall — a week or two before the recipients of the genuine Nobel Prizes are announced — for ten achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think. ...

Publications

Books

• Nowak, M.A. R.M. May. 2000. Virus Dynamics: the Mathematical Foundations of Immunology and Virology. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0198504187
• Magurran, A.E. and R.M. May (eds.). 1999. Evolution of Biological Diversity. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0198503040
• Lawton, J.H. and R.M. May (eds.). 1995. Extinction Rates. Oxford University Press. ISBN 019854829X
• Edwards, P.J., R.M. May, N.R. Webb (eds.). 1994. Large Scale Ecology and Conservation Biology. Blackwell Scientific Publishers. ISBN 0865428018
• Anderson, R.M. and R.M. May. 1991. Infectious Diseases of Humans: Transmission and Control. Oxford University Press.ISBN 019854040X
• Hassell, M.P. and R.M. May (eds.). 1990. Population Regulation and Dynamics. Cambridge University Press.
• Roughgarden, J., R.M. May and S.A. Levin. 1989. Perspectives in Ecological Theory. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0691085080
• May, R.M. (ed.). 1984. Exploitation of Marine communities : report of the Dahlem Workshop on Exploitation of Marine Communities, Berlin, April 1-6, 1984. Springer-Verlag. ISBN 3540150285
• Anderson, R.M. and R.M. May. (eds.). 1982. Population Biology of Infectious Diseases. Springer-Verlag ISBN 0387116508
• May, R.M. (ed.). 1976 (and 1981). Theoretical Ecology: Principles and Applications. Blackwell Scientific Publishers. ISBN 0632007680
• May, R.M. 1973. Stability and Complexity in Model Ecosystems. Princeton University Press. ISBN 0691081255. (re-issued with a retrospective introduction in the Princeton Landmarks in Biology series, 2000)

External links

• Lord (Robert) May of Oxford Biography
• Professor Lord May of Oxford OM AC Kt PRS
• Profile of Robert May: the 2001 Blue Planet Prize Recipient
• Bush Accused of "Fiddling While World Burns" by Ignoring Climate Change
• A commentary on Robert May's request to Ignobel by the Guardian