Memorial Lectures:

Started in 1986 with the van Niel series, this fine tradition has expanded to include the Abbott, Blinks and Mazia memorial lectures. Participants are chosen to reflect new work done in the field of the one memorialized.

Donald Putnam Abbott (1920-1986)

Donald Putnam Abbott - Invertebrate zoologist with a special interest in tunicates, Dr. Abbott was honored by colleagues and students alike for excellence in teaching.

2019 Drew Harvell (31st)
2018 Richard Emlet (30th)
2017 Gonzalo Giribet (29th)
2016 Casey Dunn (28th)
2015 Billie Swalla (27th)
2014 Douglas Erwin (26th)
2013 Max Telford (25th)
2012 Sheila Patek (24th)
2011 Richard Strathmann (23rd)
2010 Craig Young (22nd)
2009 Armand Kuris (21st)
2008 Peter Glynn (20th)
2007 David Lindberg (19th)
2006 Doug Eernisse (18th)
2005 Nicole King (17th)
2004 Greg Wray (16th)
2003 Donal Manahan (15th)
2002 Jeremy Jackson (14th)
2001 Jim Valentine (13th)
2000 Jim Carlton (12th)
1999 Jerry Hilbish (11th)
1998 Richard T. Barber (10th)
1997 Rudolf Raff (9th)
1996 Victor Vacquier (8th)
1995 Rhanor Gillette (7th)
1994 George N. Somero (6th)
1993 Leonard Muscatine (5th)
1992 Joram Piatigorsky (4th)
1991 Peter Ward (3rd)
1990 John Pearse (2nd)
1989 Michael Hadfield (1st)

Isabella Ainoa Abbott (1919 – 2010)

2022 Michelle María Early Capistrán (1st)

Lawrence R. Blinks (1900-1989).

Dr. Blinks was responsible for landmark studies on the electrical properties of cells. What is especially interesting is that these experiments were not done with the neurons of animals such as squid, but with the extremely large cells of certain species of algae (Nitella, Valonia and Halicystis)

2022 Roxanne Beltran (26th)
2020 Deborah Gordon (25th)
2019 Kelly Benoit-Bird (24th)
2018 Doug Altshuler (23rd)
2016 Peter T. Madsen (22nd)
2015 Bruce Robinson (21st)
2014 Edith Widder (20th)
2013 Steve Haddock (19th)
2011 Virginia Walbot (18th)
2010 Anitra Thorhaug (17th)
2008 Roger Tsien (16th)
2007 Nicholas Spitzer (15th)
2006 Sharon Long (14th)
2004 Richard W. Tsien (13th)
2003 Lionel Jaffe (12th)
2002 Richard Aldrich (11th)
2001 Clay Armstrong (10th)
2000 Gary Yellen (9th)
1999 Simon Levinson (8th)
1998 Stephen Highstein (7th)
1997 David Clapham (6th)
1995 Knut Schmidt-Nielsen (5th)
1994 Theodore H. Bullock (4th)
1993 Charles Arntzen (3rd)
1992 Winslow Briggs (2nd)
1990 Robert Haselkorn (1st)

Daniel Mazia (1912-1996)

Dr. Mazia is considered by many to be the father of modern cell biology with a particular interest in cell division and the organelle of organization, the centrosome. A world renown microscopist and teacher. "...the giant leaps in our science of the cell have been made by seeing."

2020 Dan Rohksar (19th)
2019 Wallace Marshall (18th)
2018 Bernie Degnan (16th)
2017John Wallingford (15th)
2015 Rob Krumlauf (14th)
2014 Matt Scott (13th)
2013 Bob Goldstein (12th)
2012 James Nelson (11th)
2011 Eric Davidson (10th)
2009 Patricia Hunt (9th)
2008 Michael Skinner (8th)
2007 Ron Vale (7th)
2006 Sir John Gurdon (6th)
2005 Rudolf Jaenisch (5th)
2004 Richard McIntosh (4th)
2003 Jerry Schatten (3rd)
2002 Marc Kirschner (2nd)
2001 Tim Hunt (1st)

Cornelius Bernard van Niel (1897-1985)

Dr. van Niel is known for his work with photosynthetic bacteria, showing a common mechanism for photosynthesis in green plants and bacteria. He is also known for his concept reducing the photosynthetic process to a series of biochemical steps similar to those used in respiration and fermentation. In teaching, his intensive course in microbiology became the "Mecca" of American Microbiology.

2024 David Booth (28th)
2015 Markus Covert (27th)
2014 Chris Francis (26th)
2013 Mary Ann Moran (25th)
2012 Jed Fuhrman (24th)
2011 Peter Girguis (23rd)
2010 Alexandra Worden (22nd)
2009 John Hobbie (21st)
2008 David Karl (20th)
2007 Kevin Arrigo (19th)
2006 Steve Giovannoni (18th)
2005 John Priscu (17th)
2004 Ford Doolittle (16th)
2003 Karl Stetter (15th)
2002 Ed Delong (14th)
2001 Susan Lindquist (13th)
2000 Tom Fenchel (12th)
1999 Norman Pace (11th)
1997 Farooq Azam (10th)
1994 Lee Hartwell (9th)
1993 Daniel Nathans (8th)
1992 Saul Roseman (7th)
1991 Paul Berg (6th)
1990 Arthur Kornberg (5th)
1989 Harlyn O. Halvorson (4th)
1988 Benjamin E. Volcani (3rd)
1987 Holger Jannasch (2nd)
1986 Norbert Pfennig (1st)

To see titles visit List of Seminars Past from 2001 to 2015