6 November 2007

Dundee PhD student nominated among great Britons of 2007

John McGhee (31), a PhD student and 3-D graphic artist at the University of Dundee, has been nominated as a Morgan Stanley Great Briton of 2007.

John, who also lectures at the University's Duncan of Jordanstone College, has been nominated in the Science & Innovation category of the prestigious awards, which recognise and celebrate outstanding British achievement over the past year.

"I was totally surprised when I found out about this as I’m not even sure how the nomination has come about but it is a real honour, especially when you see some of the names who have been nominated and won in the past," said John, who is originally from Edinburgh.

"It’s great when your work starts getting this kind of attention. I am working in an area where I feel there is great potential to develop new ideas, but it is still fairly early days in bringing these to fulfilment. But getting this kind of exposure can only help."

John has developed a series of 3D computer animation tools which show anatomical images in a form which can be easily understood by patients. The images have the potential to be used as a means of improving patient disease understanding and enhance medical training.

His work has attracted international attention, both from clinicians and from the art world while initial trials with patients in Dundee have provided hugely encouraging results.

Prior to his PhD research John successfully completed an MSc in Animation and Visualisation at the University’s School of Media Arts and Imaging, exploring the relevance of creative 3D Visualisation and Animation technologies in Medical Imaging.

Morgan Stanley Great Britons is an annual awards programme that recognises and celebrates outstanding British achievement over the past year. Previous winners in the Science & Innovation category include Sir Tim Berners-Lee, inventor of the internet, and Professor Sir Alec Jeffreys, who developed DNA fingerprinting and profiling.

The public can nominate their Morgan Stanley Great Britons through the website at www.greatbritons.org. Shortlist Judging Panels, who are experts in their field, then select a shortlist prior to the Final Judging Panel selecting the overall winners of each category. The winners are announced at a prestigious awards ceremony held in central London in January.

For media enquiries contact:
Roddy Isles
Head, Press Office
University of Dundee
Nethergate Dundee, DD1 4HN
TEL: 01382 384910
E-MAIL: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk