Looking for scientists to face the new £ 50 bill

Professors Stephen Hawking and Dorothy Hodgkin, the only British woman to win a Nobel Prize in science, are among the first proposals of a prominent scientist who will appear on the new £ 50 bill from the Bank of England.

Bank governor Mark Carney opened public applications yesterday, demanding that they no longer live and in areas such as medical research, biology and astronomy.

Professor Brian Cox was quick to name Professor Hawking, a renowned theoretical physicist who died in March, for inspiring "thousands of scientists" and "millions" of others.

The president of the Royal Society, Venki Ramakrishnan, said that he would choose a "remarkable individual," Professor Hodgkin, the chemist who died in 1994.

"We can thank Dorothy for revealing the three-dimensional structures of many biologically important molecules such as penicillin, insulin and vitamin B12, as well as having inspired several generations of great crystallographers," he said. added Dr. Ramakrishnan.

Professor Hodgkin won the coveted award for advancing the technique of X-ray crystallography, used to determine the 3D structures of molecules. While many will not have a £ 50 bill burning a hole in their pocket, the bank said some $ 330 million was outstanding.

The scientist will appear on the other side of the ticket to the Queen, who is the only living person to appear on the bank notes.

The Bank was keen to point out that it should not be acting from a non-fictional character, avoiding another "Boaty McBoatface" scenario in which the fictitious name of a research vessel drew the more votes.

At the announcement at the Science Museum in London, Carney added, "I am afraid that no lord of time of any sex is eligible."

The public has six weeks to register their applications on the Bank's website. Mr. Carney will make the final selection, which will be announced next year.

He stated that he remained "open-minded" on what his choice would be and celebrated the success of British scientists, from the steam engine to the telegraph, to power the industrial revolutions.

"In medicine and biology, the discoveries of penicillin, X-rays and the double helix by British scientists have allowed people to live longer and healthier," he added.

The date of deployment of the note replacing the one that presented the pioneers of the industrial revolution Matthew Boulton and James Watt has not yet been revealed. This will be the last of the note to go from paper to plastic polymer.

The current paper, £ 20, will be replaced by a polymer version from 2020. It will feature artist JMW Turner.

The outstanding £ 50 note was introduced in 2011, but its existence has been questioned due to concerns about money laundering and tax evasion.

But the new number will include new security features.

Scientists Dr. Maggie Aderin-Pocock, Dr. Emily Grossman, Professor Simon Schaffer, and Dr. Simon Singh are members of the Advisory Committee who are creating a shortlist of candidates for the Governor.

The nominations close on December 14 and Mr. Carney said the announcement should be made by next summer.