ANALYTICAL PROCEEDINGS, MARCH 1989, VOL 26 85 New Members of Council Neil Crosby is currently head of Fertilisers and Feeding Stuffs at the Laboratory of the Government Chemist. He was born in Sutton, Surrey, in 1936 and was educated at Bolton School before studying at the University of Leeds, where he was awar- ded a BSc degree in 1959 and a PhD in 1962 for a thesis entitled ”Some Physical Properties of Solubilised Collagens .” He then joined the LGC and worked succes- sively on pesticide residues, water and sewage chemistry, nitrosamines, food additives and contaminants before start- ing his current job some 9 years ago. He was awarded the Fellowship of the Insti- tute of Food Science and Technology in 1977. Mr. Penketh had a long career with ICI, where at various times he was Chief Analyst of the Heavy Organic Chemicals and Petrochemicals Divisions, Chairman of the ICI Analytical Chemists Com- mittee, R & T Administration Group Manager of Petrochemicals and Plastics Division, and Head of Physics and Radio- isotopes Group.On retiring from ICI he became Principal Consultant of Penlee Services Ltd. and Managing Director of Sanderson Chemical Consultants Ltd. He is married with three children. He has travelled extensively for both business and pleasure, and his hobbies include collecting stamps, coins and miniature medals. He is interested in most sports and plays geriatric badminton and lousy golf. In his weaker moments he confesses to be a supporter of Middlesbrough Foot- ball Club. Dr. Crosby was first Honorary Assis- tant Secretary, then Honorary Secretary, of the Education and Training Group of Peter Stevens was born in London in the Analytical Division for 7 years.He is December, 1929. He attended a local also a member of the Analytical Methods grammar school at Wembley and, despite Committee and Chairman of its Medicinal frequent wartime excursions to the air- Additives Sub-committee as well as being raid shelters, qualified for university entry on the Editorial Boards of The Analysr in 1948. Like most of his contemporaries and Food Additives and Contaminants. he had first to complete National Service Dr. Crosby now lives in Watford with in RAF Signals, which he regards as an his wife Margaret, son and daughter. His important part of his education. The recreations include gardening, piano 2-year break made resumption of studies, music, chess, wine appreciation and at Bristol University, an effort but he marathon running.graduated in 1953, writing an undergradu- ate thesis on the attempted synthesis of a George Penketh is Chairman of the North septanose sugar. During this time he East Region of the Analytical Division spent two summer vacations at the Post and is serving on Council for the third Office Research Laboratories at Dollis time. He has served on several of the Hill, and prior to university did 6 months’ Division’s Committees and is currently a routine milk testing with the Express member of the Analytical Methods Com- Dairies at Cricklewood, both useful mittee. He was educated at Stockton experiences. Grammar School and obtained an exter- His first job was in the research labora- nal BSc (London) degree in Chemistry by tories of the Calico Printers Association in evening study at Constantine Technical Manchester, where terylene had recently College (now Teesside Polytechnic). been discovered.He worked on crease proofing of fabrics, and was also involved with the first automatic pleating machine to be used in Britain. He met his wife Ruth, as a fellow resident at the Man- Chester University Settlement, where she was involved in postgraduate social work training. Deciding to begin married life some- where new, he was the first graduate to join the newly created Process Investiga- tion Department at Montrose in January, 1956. Glaxo had established a factory in 1952 to make cortisone, the first synthetic steroid. During 4 years’ development work he took an interest in paper chro- matography. When Glaxo became one of the first British companies to investigate thin-layer chromatography, he applied the technique to the range of steroids then being manufactured at Montrose.His observations made such an impact on the control of production quality that he became a full-time analyst as a result, publishing several notes on the technique as well as a review, contributing to a book on chromatography and lecturing on ster- oid TLC. In 1964 he took over responsi- bility for infrared spectroscopy, another key technique for steroid analysis, and in 1969 began using gas chromatography for steroids. However, the introduction of liquid chromatography in 1974 was of much greater impact for main component assays.The factory had diversified to include the manufacture of cephalosporin antibiotics and a variety of fine chemicals, e.g., salbutamol, an anti-asthmatic drug. He devoted quite a lot of time to environmental analysis in the nineteen- seventies, both by infrared and GLC. In 1980 his Analytical Development Unit was translated to the Quality Assurance Department, and in 1985 he was trans- ferred to administer the Analytical Chemistry Unit, where shift teams and day staff run a wide variety of routine86 ANALYTICAL PROCEEDINGS, MARCH 1989, VOL 26 analyses on over 50 different chemical stages of more than a dozen syntheses. During his career the Montrose factory has expanded from 125 to over 750 employees. He became involved with the Scottish Region of the Analytical Division, RSC, in 1970, when he was invited by John Ottaway to join the Committee as an East Coast Representative. He served three spells, from 1970-72, 1981-83 and 1984- 87, when he became Chairman of the region somewhat unexpectedly, the Chairman designate having migrated to England. He attended his first SAC con- ference in 1971 and was pleased to serve as a member of the Edinburgh SAC 83 organising Committee. His two children are both Scottish graduates, son Howard training in South Wales to become a GP, and daughter Monica teaching at a mission school in Pakistan. His principal leisure enthusiasm is amateur drama and he has just completed 3 years as National Chairman of the Scottish Community Drama Association. He has maintained a lifelong interest in Scouting, is a reader in the Church of Scotland, and a keen gardener. He has just joined MENSA.