To bring the profound gift of hearing to deaf people, Laureate Professor (University of Melbourne) Graeme Clark AC conquered challenges such as scepticism from the scientific community and limited funding. (Photo, circa 2005.)
The dedicated Australian ear surgeon and neuroscientist led the team that pioneered:
'... one of the world’s greatest biomedical engineering achievements, the multi-channel cochlear implant or bionic ear – the first device to allow severely-to-profoundly deaf people understand speech and the first restoration of a human sense.'
In addition to being named Senior Australian of the Year in 2001, Clark has received multiple international awards and distinctive accolades.
**This photograph is part of an IA series that looks at Australia through the lens of award-winning photojournalist Bill McAuley.**
Bill McAuley's 40-plus-year news career began in 1969 as a cadet photographer at 'The Age' in Melbourne.
He has several published collections, including 'Portraits of the Soul: A lifetime of images with Bill McAuley' and 'Last light on Victoria Dock, 1999'. To see more from Bill, click here.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License
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