Obituaries

Dr van Zyl graduated with a BSc from the Orange Free State University in 1951 and gained his MSc in 1953 before being awarded a Rhodes Scholarship. Following his time at Oxford, he lectured at the University of London and then at the Physics Department of Birmingham University, 1960-88, becoming director of the second year undergraduate course. He also instructed Sport Science undergraduates in sailing, swimming, gymnastics and trampolining.

Richard graduated with a degree in Jurisprudence from the University of Oxford and became a leading international tax law scholar. He served in the US Navy and had a distinguished career as a lawyer and law professor in New York and San Diego.

After serving in the navy during WW2, Joseph was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship in 1947 and graduated from Oxford with a BA in Jurisprudence, Civil Law and a Master of Arts. Joseph practised law for a short period and then joined the faculty of SMU Dedman School of Law in 1955, where he taught for the following 59 years through May 2014. He held important positions in legal and historical organisations, notably he directed the Texas Family Code project, and was a principal drafter of several important Texas laws addressing matrimonial property matters.

David was born in Wanganui, on the north island of New Zealand and immigrated to Canada in 1958. David had extraordinary accomplishments in his sporting pursuits (a New Zealand University Blue), his academic life (Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford University), and his professional career as a lawyer (Queens Counsel). He remained with the firm of Fraser Beatty for thirty years, practising corporate and taxation law. After retirement, he served as Chairman of the Board of Allianz Insurance Company of Canada.

Dean and Professor in Tropical Medicine at Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, UK. He retired in 1986 but continued to teach in Ireland, Italy and Malta and helped postgraduates who were seeking further training overseas. He gained many recognitions, including being appointed Companion of the Most Exalted Order of the White Elephant by the King of Thailand for his work at the University of Bangkok. Herbert published over 150 journals and an array of books.

Dr Roy Chaudhury went to the Prince of Wales Medical College, Patna. In 1955, he was awarded the Rhodes Scholarship (the first doctor from India to be selected) and spent three years at Oxford, returning to India in 1960 to take up a faculty position at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences. Following brief stints at the Canadian FDA and at the CIBA research laboratories in Goregaon, he joined the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh in 1964 and over the next 17 years would hold a variety of positions there including Professor and Head of the Department of Pharmacology and Dean. A second part of Dr Roy Chaudhury’s career was with the World Health Organization, where he spent 16 years; in Geneva, Bangkok, Colombo, Alexandria and Yangon, producing over this period of time some seminal research and process of care deliverables in the fields of essential drugs and reproductive biology. After retiring, he continued to provided leadership to a wide variety of national and international organisations that included the World Health Organization, the National Institute of Immunology, Apollo Hospitals, the Delhi Society for the Promotion of Rational Use of Drugs, the Delhi Medical Council, the Medical Council of India, the Confederation of Indian Industry, the Population Foundation of India, the Voluntary Health Association of India, the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, the International Clinical Epidemiology Network (INCLEN), the Brahmo Smaj and Akshardham.

David attended St Andrew’s College from 1946 to 1949 and graduated from Rhodes University with distinction in History and Economics. He was a Rhodes Scholar in 1952 and, whilst at Oxford University, he achieved a Boxing Blue. David was a member of the St Andrew’s College staff from 1957 to 1993, a total of 36 years. During his time at College, David held a number of leadership roles including as Head of Biology, Head of Agricultural Science, Head of Economics, Master-in-Charge of Boxing, Hockey, Tennis and Squash and Second Master (1992).

Served as Principal of Queen’s University, Canada, from 1974 to 1984 and was also one of Canada’s leading experts on federalism. Professor Watts arrived at Queen’s University in 1955 as a lecturer in philosophy, but moved to the Department of Political and Economic Science in 1961. He was appointed Dean of Arts and Science in 1969 before becoming principal five years later. Professor Watts’ main academic interest was the comparative study of federal political systems. After retiring as principal, he served as director of Queen’s Institute of Intergovernmental Relations, senior adviser to the federal government on constitutional affairs, and consultant to governments all over the world, including Canada, Kenya, Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, South Africa, Pakistan, and the United Kingdom. He also published a number of books, including New Federations: Experiments in the Commonwealth, Multi-Cultural Societies and Federalism, Administration in Federal Systems, and Comparing Federal Systems. Professor Watts received five honorary degrees and became an Officer of the Order of Canada in 1979 and a Companion in 2000.

Emeritus Professor of Civil Engineering. Professor Bilger's career started with post-doctoral research in the US and UK, before joining the department of Mechanical Engineering at Sydney University in 1965 as a senior lecturer. He became a professor in 1976 and also served as the head of the Engineering Department on several occasions.