Chaos theory pioneer Robert May dies aged 84

Robert May, former UK chief scientist and chaos theory pioneer, dies aged 84, The Guardian reports.

Known as one of Australia’s most accomplished scientists, he served as the chief scientific adviser to the United Kingdom, was president of the Royal Society, and was made a lord in 2001.

Born in Sydney on 8 January 1938, May’s work was influential in biology, zoology, epidemiology, physics and public policy. More recently, he applied scientific principles to economics and modelled the cause of the 2008 global financial crisis.

On Wednesday, his friends and colleagues paid tribute to a man who they said was a gifted polymath and a “true giant” among scientists.

Professor Ben Sheldon, the head of Oxford’s department of zoology, said May’s work had “changed entire fields” of science.

The current president of the Royal Society, Venki Ramakrishnan, said May was “an extraordinary man” who “drove great change in every domain he committed his talents to”.

“Bob was a natural communicator and used every available avenue to share his message that science and reason should lie at the heart of society, and he did so with a fervent pursuit that resonates with those of the society’s founding members.”

Professor Joss Bland-Hawthorn, the director of the Sydney Institute for Astronomy, said May’s death was a “a great loss for Australian research.”