OBITUARY

Professor Margaret Bullock died 01/01/2026

Emeritus Professor Margaret Bullock AM FTSE passed away on 1/1/2026. Elected to the ATSE Fellowship in 1991, she was recognised for her outstanding individual achievement and leadership in technological sciences and for her outstanding contributions at the interface between technology and society.

An active member of the Queensland Division, she attended many events over the time of her Fellowship and was also a member of the Membership committee in 2014.

Her primary area of work was in physiotherapy as a pioneer in the field of ergonomics. She was one of the first two students to graduate with a Bachelor of Applied Science in physiotherapy and occupational therapy in 1955. Her research in the 1960s led to extensive studies on the ergonomics of workspaces in vehicles and aircraft cockpits. In 1973, she was the first person in the world to be awarded a PhD in Physiotherapy.

Impressively, her husband Keith Bullock FTSE, an engineer and researcher in vehicle power trains, was also a Fellow of ATSE (elected in 1988).

Professor Margaret Bullock has made major contributions to the technological sciences through the development of innovative experimental techniques, her use of technology in resolving problems relating to the effective functioning and safety of men and women in a variety of work situations, her leadership in ergonomics and her significant leadership roles at the University of Queensland.

Her individual contributions as Professor of Physiotherapy and as a research worker in the field of ergonomics have earned her a national and international reputation. She has published extensively in these fields, and is widely sought as a distinguished lecturer at conferences of international standing.

She has provided stimulating leadership during her fourteen years as Head of Department of Physiotherapy at the University of Queensland, and her five years as Deputy President and President of its Academic Board.