Joyce Laing (later Joyce Salt 1910 – 25 May 2002) was a British entomologist and one of the first women to win a Stoney Scholarship from the British Federation of University Women.

Early life

Laing was born in Stockton, Durham, England in 1910. After completing high school, Laing won an essay prize and travelled to Canada in 1930, visiting the then Duke of Windsor's (Edward VIII) ranch in Alberta. Laing enrolled in

Newnham College Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...

, at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

in 1930, taking her B.A. and M.A. She was a Fellow of Newnham College from 1933 to 1937 and a Balfour Student. Women who were at Newnham College with her included Edith Whetham, Elizabeth Caldwell,

Dorothy Hill Dorothy Hill, (10 September 1907 – 23 April 1997) was an Australian geologist and palaeontologist, the first female professor at an Australian university, and the first female president of the Australian Academy of Science. Education Doroth ...

and Jean Mitchell. Laing earned her PhD from Cambridge in 1937 with a thesis on ''Host-finding by insect parasites'', and won a Stoney Scholarship of the

British Federation of University Women British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and cultur ...

, to study in Australia or New Zealand. Laing undertook her postdoctoral research at the

University of Queensland The University of Queensland is a Public university, public research university located primarily in Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. Founded in 1909 by the Queensland parliament, UQ is one of the six sandstone ...

in Australia, studying the biology of parasites and fruit flies for almost a year. Laing had studied at Newnham College alongside Australian geologist

, and both women took their PhD at Cambridge. Laing would continue her professional relationship with Hill, in the UQ Science Students Association, which took students on fieldwork trips, most notably around

Moreton Bay Moreton Bay is a bay located on the eastern coast of Australia from central Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of Queensland's most important coastal resources. The waters of Moreton Bay are a popular destination for recreational anglers and are ...

. Laing returned to England in 1938, and married one of her former Cambridge advisors, entomologist and academic,

George Salt George Salt (12 December 1903, Loughborough, Leicestershire – 17 February 2003, Cambridge, UK) was an English entomologist and ecologist. (On p. 449 the phrase "Elected FRS 1965" contains a typographical error and should be "Elected FRS 1956".) H ...

(1903–2003) in 1939. They had two sons, Michael and Peter. (See p. 457.) Joyce Salt was active in the Newnham College alumni community. Joyce and George remained at Cambridge for the rest of their lives, except for brief periods in Africa and Pakistan. Laing died on 25 May 2002. She was survived by her husband and sons.

Published works

Salt, G. and Laing, J. (1935). Discriminative Ability of a Parasitoid. ''Nature'', 135 (3419): 792. Laing, J. (1935). On the Ptilinum of the Blow-fly (Calliphora erythrocephala). ''Journal of cell science'', s2-77 (308): 497–521. Laing, J. (1937). Host-Finding by Insect Parasites – Observations on the Finding of Hosts by Alysia manducator, Mormoniella vitripennis and Trichogramma evanescens. ''Journal of animal ecology'', 6(2): 298–317. (over 290 citations)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Laing, Joyce 1910 births 2002 deaths Alumni of Newnham College, Cambridge