Myron Kendall Brakke: 1921 to 2007

Myron Kendall Brakke: 1921 to 2007.

Seymour Benzer 1921–2007

It is now common knowledge that both “Nature” and “Nurture” determine animal behavior. But even as late as the 1970s, the concept that genes have anything to do with behavior was not universally accepted. In the face of such skepticism, Seymour Benzer, working tirelessly at Caltech, refused to join the philosophical debate and, in the way so familiar to those who knew him, shrugged his shoulder...

Seymour Benzer (1921–2007)

Biology lost one of its greats with the death on November 30th last year of Seymour Benzer. In the century that began with the rediscovery of Mendelian units of heredity and ended with the sequencing of the human genome, Benzer’s studies of gene fine structure defined the pivotal moment in the transition from classical to molecular genetics. This quiet devoté of science, with an impish sense of...

Seymour Benzer (1921–2007)

The style of scientific giants differs at least as much as their interests. Seymour Benzer, who died in Pasadena on Novem-ber 30, 2007, at the age of 86, was made of the stuff of the great restless explorers. But unlike the Cooks and Magellans, he never waited for a monarch's approval to sail, nor did he claim sovereignty over the new territory. With admirable drive, curiosity , and tenacity, h...

Myron Lee Bender

Any opinions expressed in this memoir are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Academy of Sciences.