Priscilla Reining, ~1923-2007

The Washington Post writes about the life and research of anthropologist Priscilla Reining who died on July 19 at the age of 84.

She was a distinguished scientist who held three degrees in anthropology from the University of Chicago, but she was also, according to those who knew her, a courageous and groundbreaking example to other women.

In 1953, she moved to Tanzania with her infant son, the first of her three children, and lived near a Haya village for two years. At the same time, her husband, Conrad C. Reining, was conducting research in Sudan.

They fled a Sudanese uprising in 1955.

"We were lucky to escape," Robert Reining said. "My father knew a back road out of Sudan into Congo. He led a whole convoy of people, and they escaped."

In the 1970s, Reining spearheaded an African satellite mapping project.

Robert Reining took a year off from college in the mid-1970s to help his mother on an early satellite mapping project. Whole regions of Africa suddenly came into view. Scientists could measure the advance of the Sahara Desert, and governments and lending agencies could plan drought and famine relief.

"These were the first images available to anyone outside the intelligence community," said her son. "For the first time, we could count the villages. You had what was effectively the first reliable population estimate of this area."

Reining is best known for her analysis of patterns of HIV infection in different African populations which found that uncircumcised African men were 86% more likely to get infected with the AIDS virus. Not surprisingly, her results were met with skepticism, but subsequent studies have confirmed the correlation.

But finally, at an international AIDS conference in Sydney last week, Anthony S. Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, declared, "We've had one important breakthrough this year, with understanding the role of circumcision in prevention."

Tags: Priscilla Reining, anthropology, AIDS

Women in Science Link Roundup: The Arts

A few recent links about women, science and art and fiction.

Abel Pharmboy writes about Odile Crick, the wife of Francis Crick, who died on July 5. Odile drew the double-helix structure of DNA in Crick and Watson's famous 1953 paper.

LabLit.com reports on the work of London artists Denise Wyllie and Clare OHagan's series of artworks to raise awareness of Rosalind Franklin and ovarian cancer.

Wyllie explains: “We were talking to a fellow artist about our project and she said, ‘Oh you know about Rosalind Franklin, of course’, but of course, we didn’t.” Intrigued, the artists researched Franklin’s story and were shocked by what they found. O Hagan says: “We were fuelled by anger that we knew nothing about Franklin’s work and that her work wasn’t recognised. It inspired us to make art to acknowledge her scientific achievements.”

Poppy Z. Brite points to a passage that's a great example of what not to write:

By all reports, gorgeous female characters in books must wear less makeup than any other women on earth, with the possible exception of starlets sitting for interviews. The I-don't-see-myself description appears on page 3 of Sequence, an alleged suspense thriller by Lori Andrews. Here, two pages later, is the sentence that made me throw the book across the room (and, later, in the trash):

Alex felt that she could persuade the corpse, woman to woman, to yield up her genetic secrets.

* Harry Potter SPOILER *

The Today Show talked to J.K. Rowling about what happens to her characters after The Deathly Hallows:

Luna Lovegood, the eccentric Ravenclaw who was fascinated with Crumple-Horned Snorkacks and Umgubular Slashkilters, continues to march to the beat of her own drum.

“I think that Luna is now traveling the world looking for various mad creatures,” Rowling said. “She’s a naturalist, whatever the wizarding equivalent of that is.”

Tags: Rosalind Franklin, Denise Wyllie, Clare O'Hagan, Odile Crick, Luna Lovegood

Anne McLaren, 1927-2007

ScienceNOW reports that 80-year-old geneticist Anne McLaren was killed in a car accident on July 7th. Also killed was her ex-husband Donald Michie, with whom she was still close.

Still active in the lab despite her age, McLaren's most recent research focused on mouse primordial germ cells, the embryonic cells that give rise to egg and sperm cells. "She could truly be considered one of the [pioneers] of modern mammalian germ cell genetics," says Renee Reijo Pera, a developmental biologist at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California.

McLaren's broad range of research-- including genetics, developmental biology, and reproductive biology--led her to tackle the social and ethical issues surrounding human embryology research. She was a member of the Warnock Committee, which helped shape the U.K.'s landmark 1990 Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act, and for 10 years served on the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority, which the Act established to regulate the use of human tissue. She believed that full disclosure of the potential risks and benefits associated with medical advances was the best way to gain public acceptance of stem cell and other controversial research.

McLaren was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of London in 1975 and was awarded a Royal Medal in 1990. In 2001 she received a L'Oreal Award for women in science, and earlier this year she received the March of Dimes Prize in Developmental Biology.

In a 2001 tribute from her research students published in the International Journal of Developmental Biology, she was lauded as a scientist, teacher and mentor. She sounds like a bit of a superwoman and expected no less from those who worked with her.

As John West writes "I was so impressed that Anne could find time to work at the bench, attend numerous meetings and spend time with her family, that I decided that there must be three of her." She expected us to do the same. Paul Burgoyne recalls "when later I was with Anne at the Medical Development Unit in London, and had by this time acquired three children, she would tell me off if I worked late into the evening and say I shoudl be at home with my family."

Jim Smith, Chairman of the Gurdon Institute at the University Cambridge where McLaren had her lab, also praised both her scientific and personal achievements:

"My colleagues and I will miss Anne enormously. Her scientific achievements speak for themselves, but in addition to these we will miss her enormous energy and enthusiasm - she outdid many younger scientists during late-night discussions - and her unfailing support for women scientists, for whom she was a wonderful role model. As Chairman of the Institute I shall also miss her great knowledge and wisdom and her unfailing ability to put matters into perspective. She was a great colleague and a great friend.”

Even after 80 years, it was a life cut short.

Related links:

• Official McLaren Lab Web Page
• Video: "Human Eggs: Why do we need them? How do we get them?" a lecture at the Bedford Stem Cell Research Foundation's 2005 Activated Egg Symposium
• Anne McLaren - a tribute from her research students (2001)

Tags: Anne McLaren, obituary

Denice Denton, One Year Later

One year ago last Saturday electrical engineer and chancellor of UC Santa Cruz Denice Denton committed suicide. Denton's friends and colleagues created a tribute web site where people can share stories about her life and legacy. As the site says:

Denice Denton had a bold, far-reaching vision for engineering education. Access, equity and excellence were the cornerstones of her work. She worked tirelessly for an engineering educational system that is truly accessible to everyone, that nurtures students' dreams, that enables students to fulfill those dreams upon graduation, and that encourages them to make substantial contributions to our global society. She sought to increase the number and diversity of voices working together to improve engineering education and the role of engineering in society. She promoted excellence in all aspects of engineering education -- from the actual content of the courses, to the way they were taught, to admissions policies, to research on learning, to essential support systems for students, faculty and staff.

At the time of her death, she had been embroiled in controversy over University of California management compensation. A few weeks ago, San Francisco magazine took a more detailed look at the factors that may have lead to her death, including her lack of administrative experience, the compensation scandal, homophobia, and depression.

SciBloggers have posted their own recollections

• Zuska @ Thus Spake Zuska "Thinking of Denice, One Year Later"
• Janet Stemwedel @ Adventures in Ethics and Science "The death of an administrator"

Tags: Denice Denton

Goodbye, Mr. Wizard

Last week Don Herbert, TV's Mr. Wizard, died of cancer, just short of his 90th birthday. The "Watch Mr. Wizard" kids' science show ran on American TV from 1951 to 1965. A revamped version of the show ran on Nickelodeon from 1983 to 1990. His show was unique in that it included girls along with the boys. In an interview with Wired last month, Herbert indicated that was one reason for the show's success.

WN: You began to include girls in your show quite early on. Female scientists are beginning to outnumber male scientists in some areas. Can you comment on what led you to be so far ahead of your time?

Herbert: Looking back it certainly was a major contributing factor to the show's longevity and success. The girls were terrific!

I actually have never seen Mr. Wizard. The original show was before my time and the Nickelodeon version didn't start airing until I was a senior in high school. From the outpouring of fond memories I've read online, he inspired many girls and boys to study science. What a wonderful legacy!

More: LA Times Obituary

Tags: Mr. Wizard

Elizabeth Sulzman, Rest in Peace

ScienceWoman reflects on the sad news of the death of Dr. Elizabeth Sulzman, an apparent suicide (Go read the post and comments. I'll wait.). Sulzman was an Associate Professor in the Department of Crop and Soil Science at Oregon State University. Her faculty web page is now a tribute to her.

"Elizabeth brought soil science to life for her students," said Russ Karow, head of OSU Crop and Soil Sciences Department. "Her collegiality, dynamic personality, and infectious enthusiasm for active learning and scientific inquiry were her hallmarks."

From a childhood of tumbling rocks in the basement and dreaming of becoming "Jaquette Cousteau," Sulzman had always been in love with the outdoors. She worked for a time with the Peace Corps in the Central African Republic, helping villagers build a dam.

"It was quite a challenge," Sulzman recalled. "I had no knowledge of the local trade language and the people I worked with had little knowledge of engineering or hydrology." Yet, by the end of her stay, Sulzman and the villagers had completed 80 ponds to provide a source of protein for the people in the area.

And her science:

Elizabeth is described by those who worked with her as "possessing an astonishing level of curiosity", a "hands-on person", and "one who has leaned the fundamentals of 19th Century Soil Science and can apply it with biogeochemistry, isotope chemistry, and atmospheric sciences to solve the problems of the 20th Century."

What a sad loss for her family, her students, and science.

More: KGW News report

Edited to Add: Last Sunday (June 17) The Oregonian ran a long article about Sulzman's life and death.

I've noticed the arrival of lot of visitors searching for information on Elizabeth Sulzman. Please feel free to leave a comment if you knew Elizabeth (or even if you didn't)!

Tags: Elizabeth Sulzman

Esther Lederberg (1922-2006)

Microbiologist Esther Miriam Zimmer Lederberg died on November 11, 2006. From her obituary in the LA Times:

She discovered the lambda phage, a parasite of bacteria that became a key tool for the laboratory study of viruses and genetics, and was the co-developer with her husband of replica plating, a technique for rapid screening of bacteria for desired mutations.

"She developed lab procedures that all of us have used in research," said cancer researcher Stanley Falkow of the Stanford University School of Medicine.

She was also a pioneer of women's rights, becoming a full professor at a time when women were rare on the faculties of Stanford and other major universities. "She was a real legend," said Dr. Lucy Tompkins of Stanford.

Related links:

• Aetiology: Microbiology Pioneer Dies
•