Two McMaster faculty named new Fellows of Royal Society of Canada

Lorraine York, a professor of English and Cultural Studies and Mark Crowther, who holds a joint appointment in the departments of Medicine, and Pathology and Molecular Medicine, have been named new Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada.


Two McMaster faculty, one a preeminent scholar on the study of celebrity and culture, the other a renowned expert in the treatment and prevention of blood clot complications, are among the newest Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada, the country’s highest academic honour.

Lorraine York, a professor of English and Cultural Studies has been elected to the Academy of Arts and Humanities. Mark Crowther, who holds a joint appointment in the departments of Medicine, and Pathology and Molecular Medicine, and is also an associate of the Department of Health Research Methods, Evidence and Impact, has been elected to the Academy of Science.

The Royal Society of Canada (RSC), which announced its 2017 fellows today, promotes Canadian research and scholarly excellence in the humanities and in the social and natural sciences.

“Induction into the RSC is an honour reserved for Canada’s best and brightest scholars and researchers,” says McMaster President Patrick Deane. “This accomplishment is a testament to the important contributions that these two exceptional researchers have made within their respective fields, and demonstrates the high esteem in which they are held by their peers. I congratulate them both on this significant achievement.”

A contemporary Canadian literature specialist, Lorraine York’s particular interest is in Canadian literary celebrity and celebrity culture. She has been published in the leading journals and presses in her field, with a total of 105 career publications.

York’s 2013 book Margaret Atwood and the Labour of Literary Celebrity Culture, which was shortlisted for the prestigious Gabrielle Roy Prize, examined the conditions that give rise to Canadian literary celebrity and stimulated the growth of a new area of scholarship focused on celebrity literary culture in Canada. In recent years, York has expanded the focus of her research to include the study of celebrity in culture more broadly.

Mark Crowther’s research is focused on exploring ways to improve existing anticoagulant drugs (blood thinners). He is currently investigating whether daily, fixed, small doses of Vitamin K can improve the quality of the commonly used blood thinner, warfarin, and is also studying the use of anticoagulant drugs in patients with kidney failure, in addition to a number of other research projects. His clinical interest is in the treatment and prevention of blood clotting complications.

Crowther, recently named the Chair of McMaster’s Department of Medicine, holds a Career Investigator Award from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario and is the LEO Pharma Chair in Thromboembolism Research. He is the past Chair of the Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine and the past Vice-President of Research at St. Joseph’s Healthcare System

York and Crowther will be inducted into the Royal Society on November 23 in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

The pair bring the total number of McMaster affiliated Fellows of the Royal Society to 71.

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