The British Institute of Radiology (BIR) is a

radiology Radiology ( ) is the medical discipline that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide their treatment, within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiat ...

society and

charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * C ...

based in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

. It is the oldest institute of its kind in the world, forming on 2 April 1897.

History

The society can be traced back to two separate institutes, "The X-Ray Society" in April, 1897, and "The Röntgen Society"; both were formed in the wake of the discovery of

X-rays An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10 picometers to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30&nbs ...

Wilhelm Röntgen Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (; ; 27 March 184510 February 1923) was a German mechanical engineer and physicist, who, on 8 November 1895, produced and detected electromagnetic radiation in a wavelength range known as X-rays or Röntgen rays, an achie ...

in 1895. The latter was founded by Dr John Macintyre in 1897. He had been the first person in Britain to use X-rays, using equipment created by William Thomson, Lord Kelvin at

Glasgow Royal Infirmary The Glasgow Royal Infirmary (GRI) is a large teaching hospital. With a capacity of around 1,000 beds, the hospital campus covers an area of around , and straddles the Townhead and Dennistoun districts on the north-eastern fringe of the city cen ...

on 5 February 1896. The formalisation of the BIR occurred in 1927 upon the merger of the two societies. The BIR became a registered charity in 1963. Among other publications, the BIR publishes several journals including the ''

British Journal of Radiology ''The British Journal of Radiology'' is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering radiology. It is published by the British Institute of Radiology and the editors-in-chief are Simon Jackson (University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust) and Andre ...

'' (BJR), and ''Dentomaxillofacial Radiology'' (the official journal of the International Association of Dentomaxillofacial Radiology, IADMFR). The '' Archives of Clinical Skiagraphy'', first published in 1896, ultimately became the BJR in 1928.

Notable past presidents

* 1897-98

Silvanus P Thompson Silvanus Phillips Thompson (19 June 1851 – 12 June 1916) was a professor of physics at the City and Guilds Technical College in Finsbury, England. He was elected to the Royal Society in 1891 and was known for his work as an electrical engin ...

* 1907-08 William Duddell * 1922-23

Sir Humphry Rolleston Sir Humphry Davy Rolleston, 1st Baronet, (21 June 1862 – 23 September 1944) was a prominent English physician. Rolleston was the son of George Rolleston (Linacre Professor of Physiology at Oxford) and Grace Davy, daughter of John Davy a ...

* 1923-24

Sir Oliver Lodge Sir Oliver Joseph Lodge, (12 June 1851 – 22 August 1940) was a British physicist and writer involved in the development of, and holder of key patents for, radio. He identified electromagnetic radiation independent of Hertz's proof and at his ...

* 1972-73 Robert Steiner * 1973-74 Frank Farmer * 2003-04 Janet Husband

References

External links

The British Institute of Radiology website
{{authority control Health in the London Borough of Islington Medical associations based in the United Kingdom Organisations based in the London Borough of Islington Organizations with year of establishment missing Radiology organizations