An internationally renowned biomedical engineer has won New Zealand's top science prize.
Professor Peter Hunter from the University of Auckland was awarded the 2009 Rutherford Medal and prize money of $100,000 by the Royal Society of New Zealand on Wednesday night.
Society president Garth Carnaby says Professor Hunter's revolutionary approach to modelling the human body has led to new and exciting areas of research and will eventually help advance treatments for a number of life-threatening diseases.
Two other top science prizes have gone to Professor Kenneth McNatty from Victoria University, who has won the Pickering Medal, and Dr Richard Garland, managing director of New Zealand Pharmaceuticals, who receives the Thomson Medal.
Both men also receive $15,000 to further their research.
