| 1 | Name: | Dr. John Cairns | |
| Institution: | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | ||
| Year Elected: | 1999 | ||
| Class: | 2. Biological Sciences | ||
| Subdivision: | 203. Evolution & Ecology, Systematics, Population Genetics, Paleontology, and Physical Anthropology | ||
| Residency: | Resident | ||
| Living? : | Deceased | ||
| Birth Date: | 1923 | ||
| Death Date: | November 5, 2017 | ||
John Cairns spent his research life studying natural ecosystems and how perturbations of various types affect them. His most widely acclaimed publications discussed factors causing stressed ecosystems and their restoration. He made extensive use of statistics and validation predictive models. For decades he used complex multivariant systems in his studies of microcosms and mesacosms. His work on reestablishment of damaged habitats is particularly important today because of the damage done to our planet. Dr. Cairns received his Ph.D. and M.S. degrees from the University of Pennsylvania and completed a postdoctoral course in isotope methodology at Hahnemann Medical College, Philadelphia. He was Curator of Limnology at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia for 18 years and has taught at various universities and field stations, including Virginia Polytechnic University, where was Professor Emeritus beginning in 1995. Dr. Cairns' professional certifications included Qualified Fishery Administrator by the American Fisheries Society, Senior Ecologist by the Ecological Society of America, and the Academy of Board Certified Environmental Professionals. He was a member of the National Academy of Sciences; the American Academy of Arts & Sciences; the Linnean Society of London; and the American Microscopical Society, of which he was president. He has over 1,500 publications to his credit. John Cairns died on November 5, 2017 at age 94, in Blacksburg, Virginia. | |||