P.J. Snow

Dr. Peter J. Snow was born in Jubbulpore, India, shortly after independence. When he was only 16 months of age his father retired from the British Army and his parents moved to Australia. At the age of 16 he enrolled at the University of Tasmania majoring in Zoology and Botany before graduating with First Class Honors in Zoology in 1970. He then enrolled in a PhD program in invertebrate neurobiology at the University of Alberta, completing his dissertation in 1974 before moving to the University Edinburgh where he pioneered techniques for studying the microcircuitry in the mammalian central nervous system. In 1976, he was awarded a Queen’s Fellowship in Marine Science to again work on the nervous system invertebrates. In 1978, Dr. Snow was appointed to the faculty of the Anatomy Department, University of Queensland where he supervised several large medical research programs on the plasticity of the central nervous system and the control of pain, in addition to completing studies of the neurobiology of sharks and stingrays. He is author of numerous scientific papers and book chapters and coauthor, with Dr. P. Wilson, of an extensive monograph on plasticity and development in the somatosensory system. Since retiring from University he has delivered a number of lectures on the human psyche, including the Alberta Heritage Foundation Medical Lecture. His personal interests include surfing, scuba diving, kayaking, trekking, skiing, mysticism and travel.