2019-08-09
The Robley D. Evans Medal is awarded to an individual who exemplifies Professor Evans’ extraordinary dedication and contributions to radiation safety as a physics educator, scientist, author, and humanitarian for over 50 years. Along with the medal itself, the honouree receives a lifetime HPS membership. This medal is not intended to be given out annually or even frequently, but rather, only at the discretion of the selection committee. There have only been 10 individuals to receive this honour since it was first awarded in 1997, making it that much more prestigious. ICRP is proud to announce that the Robley D. Evans Medal was presented at the 64th Health Physics Society’s Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida, to ICRP Committee 2 Member Dr Richard “Rich” Leggett.
Rich Leggett is a research scientist in the Environmental Sciences Division at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). He received his Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of Kentucky in 1972, and taught Mathematics at the Ruhr University in Bochum, Germany, and the University of Tennessee before joining the Health Physics Division at ORNL in 1976.
His main research interest is physiological systems modeling, with applications to the biokinetics of essential elements, radionuclides, and chemical toxins. His physiological systems models of the human circulation, skeleton, and alimentary transfer and his physiologically based systemic biokinetic models for a large portion of the periodic table have been adopted as international standards for derivation of radiation dose estimates and interpretation of bioassay data.
Involved in ICRP in various capacities since the 1980’s, he is the author of ICRP Publication 70, “Basic Anatomical and Physiological Data for Use in Radiological Protection: The Skeleton” and co-author of a number of other ICRP reports including a series on doses to members of the public from intake of radionuclides (1989-1996), the Reference Person document (2002), and the Human Alimentary Tract Model (2006). In 1995 he was named ORNL Author of the Year for the paper, “An age-specific kinetic model of lead metabolism in humans”. He has received several ORNL Significant Achievement Awards including an award for development of U.S. emergency response guidelines for exposure to mercury vapor as a chemical toxin.
For further information, please contact Kelsey Cloutier, Development and Communications Manager for ICRP.
Congratulations Rich!