The Fellowship of the Royal Society was founded in 1660. It is composed of the most distinguished scientists from the United Kingdom, other Commonwealth countries and the Republic of Ireland. The election process for Fellows and Foreign Members is extremely rigorous and is based upon the established practice of peer review. A qualification for membership consists of having made "a substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathematics, engineering science and medical science". Once elected, Fellows of the Royal Society serve for life. Fellows designate themselves through the use of the letters FRS after their names.
Famous Fellows
Many fellows are famous, and some have won a Nobel Prize (see Famous members of the Royal Society and Presidents of the Royal Society). Presidents are also fellows.
Some well-known living fellows include:
- Michael Ashburner
- David Attenborough
- Tim Berners-Lee
- Richard Dawkins
- Martin Fleischmann
- Stephen Hawking
- David King
- Robert May
- Roger Penrose
- Martin Rees
- Frederick Sanger
- Ian Stewart
- John E. Sulston
- Margaret Thatcher
See the category for a more comprehensive list of Fellows of the Royal Society.
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