NET today (Thursday 16th December) named one of Nottingham’s trams in honour of Sir Martyn Poliakoff - a celebrated professor at the University of Nottingham, a global leader in science, and a familiar face to millions worldwide through his hit YouTube science videos.
The Martyn Poliakoff tram was unveiled today on his 74th birthday in a special ceremony at NET’s Wilkinson Street depot where Sir Martyn, his wife and guests gathered to see the tram for the first time.
The naming is in recognition of Professor Poliakoff’s considerable achievements through more than 40 years at the University of Nottingham; his pioneering scientific work which has seen him become a global leader in green and sustainable chemistry; and for his work to make science fun and accessible to millions through a series of online videos - Sir Martyn is known worldwide as the presenter of hit YouTube science series Periodic Table of Videos which started out of the University of Nottingham’s School of Chemistry and which has grown to attract a huge global audience, with each video averaging over 205 million views.
Sir Martyn follows a long line of Nottingham heroes past or present that have had trams named after them, including Vicky McClure, Torvill and Dean and DH Lawrence. The Martyn Poliakoff tram marks the final tram on the network to be permanently named before NET moves to a new Community Hero tram naming project that will be announced in more detail next year.
Tramlink CEO Tim Hesketh said: “Professor Poliakoff is not only a Nottingham hero but also a science icon to millions worldwide through his work to make science fun and accessible to a global online audience. We are delighted to name a tram in Sir Martyn’s honour and hope that the thousands of Nottingham students using the tram each day will see his name and be inspired by his ground-breaking achievements.”
Professor Poliakoff said: “I am hugely honoured to have a tram named after me and it’s very exciting to know my students could be arriving at university on the Sir Martyn Poliakoff tram! Even though my career and passion for communicating science has taken me all over the world, Nottingham will always be home so this honour is really very special.”