Class
| • | 2. Biological Sciences | [X] |
| | 1 | Name: | Dr. John C. Avise | | | Institution: | University of California, Irvine; University of Georgia | | | Year Elected: | 2011 | | | Class: | 2. Biological Sciences | | | Subdivision: | 207. Genetics | | | Residency: | Resident | | | Living? : |
Living
| | | Birth Date: | 1948 | | | | | | |
John C. Avise
I am a naturalist at heart, a geneticist by training, and my career has been devoted to wedding these two arenas. After obtaining a B.S. degree in Fish Biology at the University of Michigan, I went on to earn a M.A. in Zoology from the University of Texas and a Ph.D. in Genetics from the University of California at Davis. My graduate training came at a time when molecular approaches were being introduced to population genetics, and I began to see that molecular markers could open the entire biological world for genetic scrutiny. Ever since then my students and I have used molecular markers to analyze the natural histories and evolution of wild animals. Topics that we have studied range from micro-evolutionary to macro-evolutionary: genetic parentage and mating systems, geographic population structure, gene flow, hybridization, biogeography, speciation, systematics, and phylogenetics. We have conducted research on diverse vertebrate and invertebrate animals from marine, freshwater, and terrestrial environments. Our typical goal is to unveil behavioral or evolutionary features of organisms, but we also aim to elucidate genetic and evolutionary properties of protein and DNA molecules. The theory and practice of evolutionary genetics are relevant to ecological issues and conservation biology, two areas that provide themes for much of our research. Although I am the acknowledged 'father of phylogeography', I like to think of myself as a broader pioneer in molecular ecology, molecular evolution, and conservation genetics. In addition to hundreds of scientific articles, I have published 20 books on subjects ranging from the science-religion interface to genetic engineering, natural history, molecular ecology, evolution, biogeography, phylogenetics, reproductive modes, educational outreach, and roles for humor in science. | |
| 2 | Name: | Dr. Francisco José Ayala | | | Institution: | University of California, Irvine | | | Year Elected: | 1984 | | | Class: | 2. Biological Sciences | | | Subdivision: | 203. Evolution & Ecology, Systematics, Population Genetics, Paleontology, and Physical Anthropology | | | Residency: | Resident | | | Living? : |
Deceased
| | | Birth Date: | 1934 | | | Death Date: | March 3, 2023 | | | | | | |
Francisco J. Ayala is a retired Professor of Biological Sciences at the University of California, Irvine. On June 12, 2002, President George W. Bush awarded him the National Medal of Science at the White House, and in 2010, Dr. Ayala won the Templeton prize. From 1994-2001, Dr. Ayala was a member of the U.S. President's Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology. He has been president and chairman of the board of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1993-96) and of Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society of the U.S (2004-05). Dr. Ayala is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts & Sciences and numerous foreign academies and has received many prizes and honorary degrees. Born in Madrid, Spain, he has lived in the United States since 1961 and became a U.S. citizen in 1971. He has published more than 1,000 articles and is author or editor of 37 books. His scientific research focuses on population and evolutionary genetics, including the origin of species, genetic diversity of populations, the origin of malaria, the population structure of parasitic protozoa, and the molecular clock of evolution. He also writes about the interface between religion and science and on philosophical issues concerning epistemology, ethics, and the philosophy of biology. Francisco José Ayala died on March 3, 2023, in Irvine, CA, at the age of 88. | |
| 3 | Name: | Dr. Michael T. Clegg | | | Institution: | University of California, Irvine | | | Year Elected: | 2012 | | | Class: | 2. Biological Sciences | | | Subdivision: | 207. Genetics | | | Residency: | Resident | | | Living? : |
Living
| | | Birth Date: | 1941 | | | | | | |
Michael T. Clegg received his B.S. and Ph.D. degrees in agricultural genetics and genetics respectively at the University of California, Davis. In 1972 he joined the faculty of Brown University moving from there to the University of Georgia in 1976. In 1984, he assumed the position of Professor of Genetics at the University of California, Riverside, where he also served as Dean of the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences from 1994 to 2000 and founding director of the Genomics Institute from 2000 to 2004. He assumed his present position as Donald Bren Professor of Biological Sciences at the University of California, Irvine, in 2004.
Clegg's research specialty is population genetics and molecular evolution. His early work in population genetics focused on the dynamical behavior of linked systems of genes in plant and Drosophila populations. During this period, he also contributed to the theoretical study of multilocus systems employing computer simulations together with the analysis of mathematical models. Later he helped pioneer the comparative analysis of cholorplast DNA variation as a tool for the reconstruction of plant phylogenies. His current work is concerned with the use of genomic data and coalescent models to study crop plant domestication in barley and avocado. Clegg is also heavily engaged in international science policy and science diplomacy through his role as Foreign Secretary of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. During an academic career of over 40 years, Clegg has published more than 160 research articles and book chapters and he has coauthored or edited nine books.
Clegg was elected to membership in the National Academy of Sciences in 1990 and he was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1992. He was elected Foreign Secretary of the National Academy of Sciences in 2002 and reelected in 2006 and 2010. He has also served as President of the American Genetic Association and President of the International Society for Molecular Biology & Evolution. He is an Associate Fellow of the Academy of Sciences of the Developing World (TWAS) and a corresponding member of several foreign academies. He was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society in 2012. | |
| 4 | Name: | Dr. Walter M. Fitch | | | Institution: | University of California, Irvine | | | Year Elected: | 2000 | | | Class: | 2. Biological Sciences | | | Subdivision: | 203. Evolution & Ecology, Systematics, Population Genetics, Paleontology, and Physical Anthropology | | | Residency: | Resident | | | Living? : |
Deceased
| | | Birth Date: | 1929 | | | Death Date: | March 10, 2011 | | | | | | |
Walter Fitch received a Ph.D. in comparative biochemistry at the University of California, Berkeley in 1958. He was a professor at the University of Wisconsin Medical School, Madison for twenty-four years before moving to the University of California, Irvine in 1986, where he was Professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology. Walter Fitch may be considered the founder of the now widespread discipline of molecular phylogenetics. He developed a method for reconstructing phylogeny based on amino acid sequences and applied it first to the cytochrome c's of 20 species in one of the most cited papers in the field of molecular evolution (Science, 1967). He developed additional methods for phylogeny reconstruction, including parsimony, the most widely used (Systematic Zoology, 1971). Fitch's contributions in molecular evolution have contributed to settle issues such as the phylogeny of South American Indian tribes, the rate of evolution of mice strains, and albumin evolution in reptiles. He pioneered the theory of the molecular evolutionary clock. Most recently, he moved evolutionary theory from reconstructing the past to predicting the future. In a series of papers analyzing the pattern of evolution of the influenza virus, his method has correctly predicted in nine out of eleven years the strain that would predominantly infect the human population in the following season, a significant finding in developing vaccines. Dr. Fitch was the founder of the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution, and served as editor-in-chief from 1983-93. He had also served on the editorial board of Systematic Zoology, Journal of Molecular Evolution, and Genomics, and was on the advisory board of Biochemical Genetics since 1966. He was a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts & Sciences and the Human Genome Organization, and a foreign member of the Linnean Society. He was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society in 2000. Walter Fitch died on March 10, 2011, at the age of 81 in Irvine, California. | |
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