In Memoriam
Wilbur Thomas Ebersold, Emeritus Professor
(From the Los Angeles Times, August 9, 2009)
Wilbur T. Ebersold (Bill), a long time resident of Santa Monica,
passed away peacefully at the age of 81. He was born in Pasadena,
the only son of Leo and Gladys Ebersold. He is survived by his
loving wife of 59 years Betty and his four children, sons Stephen
(Melisa Friedli) and David (Laura) Ebersold, daughters Susan
Ebersold, and Lisa (Steve) Pehl. He is also survived by his
grandsons, Chad, Michael and Craig Ebersold. He was preceded in
death by his granddaughter, Allie Jana Ayers.
Bill graduated from Citrus Union High School in Glendora, CA. He graduated from Stanford University with his BA degree and received a PhD in Biological Sciences from Stanford in 1954. He went to Dartmouth on a post doctoral fellowship and then to Harvard University as an Instructor where he continued his research on Chlamydomonas, a microalga. His work laid the foundation for a major field of genetic research which scientists benefit from today. He moved to California in 1960 and became a Professor at UCLA teaching Biology and Genetics. He continued his research while sponsoring graduate students. He was a Department Chairman and retired from UCLA in 1991.
A Memorial Service will be held to celebrate Bill's life on Friday, August 14, at 2:30pm in the Old North Church at Forest Lawn, Hollywood Hills, 6300 Forest Lawn Drive, Los Angeles, 90068.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Biology Endowment at UCLA's Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. http://www.eeb.ucla.ucla.edu/giving/ click the "donate now" button.
From Dr. Cliff Brunk: "I'm saddened to inform you that our friend and colleague "Bill" Wilbur T. Ebersold passed away Saturday 25 July after an extended illness. Bill was the second chair of Biology, following the merger of Zoology and Botany. Soon after Bill stepped down as Chair in the late 1970s, he suffered a major stroke, but returned to UCLA retiring in 1991. He received his Ph. D. from Stanford University and did post doctoral studies at Dartmouth and Harvard before coming to UCLA. His research focused on Chlamydomonas genetics. Although Bill has been away from UCLA for a long time he will be missed."
We thank all those who have donated to the departmental scholarship funds in memory of Dr. Ebersold.
Harlan Lewis, Emeritus Professor
(From UCLA Today, March 18, 2009)
Professor Emeritus Harlan Lewis, who earned the first Ph.D. in botany at UCLA and later became dean
of the life sciences from 1962-1981, died on Dec. 12, 2008, at his home in Pacific Palisades, one
month shy of his 90th birthday. He had been unable to regain his health after suffering a back
injury last year. In the annals of evolutionary biology, Harlan Lewis was one of the early pioneers
on genetics of plant speciation. During the middle of the 20th century, when the field of speciation
was emerging through the reworking and refinement of Darwin's observations on origins of species,
Lewis was among a group of researchers dedicated to unraveling genetic mechanisms of these
processes. He was a leader in the movement to understand the cytogenetics of populations and species
and, together with other plant researchers and their students, provided the examples that would
rewrite textbooks.
Lewis was born on Jan. 8, 1919, in Redlands, Calif. He was already an enthusiastic plant collector at age 10. He graduated in 1937 from Redlands High School before attending San Bernardino Valley College and earning an A.A. degree in 1939. He then transferred to UCLA in 1939 and received his M.A. degree in 1942. During the war years, Lewis was able to continue his plant studies by also working at Cal Tech on a project concerned with camouflage and plants. Although he served briefly in post-Hitler Europe, he was able to complete his dissertation in 1946 and receive a Ph.D. in botany.
Lewis focused much of his research on a plant that grows in California called Clarkia, a genus that is now automatically associated with him. Working out the origin of this species, Lewis and his new wife, Margaret, also a botanist, began fixing root tips and collecting seeds of central California's clarkias. Together with their graduate students, the couple established breeding populations of these annuals in an experimental garden at UCLA. His studies continued after he was awarded a post-doctorate fellowship to attend the John Innes Horticultural Institution at Merton Park in England. It was through cytogenetics, coupled with detailed ecological studies, that Lewis made his mark. Returning from England in 1948, the then-assistant professor soon began collaborating with graduate students to sort out the rich evolutionary history for Clarkia. In 1955, the Lewises published a long-awaited monograph on Clarkia, which adopted the biological species concept and helped greatly to clarify its origins. In that same year, he was named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement and received a Guggenheim Fellowship to continue his groundbreaking studies. During his two decades as dean under Chancellors Franklin Murphy and Charles Young, Lewis helped to assemble an excellent collection of research scientists in the life sciences, including senior members of the faculty who became leaders in emerging fields of molecular biology. But he never gave up teaching in the classroom, whenever he could spare the time.
Lewis was recognized continuously for his research and leadership in the field, including being elected president of the Pacific Division of the Botanical Society of America. He also served on numerous editorial boards and was also named a fellow of the California Academy of Sciences. As a professor emeritus, he continued to study plants after he retired in 1982. He was also instrumental in improving services for the emeriti at UCLA and was named 2006 Dickson Emeritus Professor of the Year. "Those who knew Harlan Lewis recognized an individual who worked diligently to meld the fields of systematics, genetics and evolution, with a burning interest in defining the nature of species in the context of ecology," said his colleague, Botany Professor Arthur Gibson. "He had a quick mind and attacked research projects with creative and analytical approaches that were cutting edge for his time. ... For all of us, he set a standard of excellence that few scientists ever reach."
Joseph Epperson, Class of 2007
Joseph Epperson, Class of 2007, and member of the 2006 Spring Field Biology Quarter, died on October 13, 2007,
in an automobile accident. As a major in Ecology, Behavior and Evolution at
UCLA, he made many close friends, particularly during the Field Biology
Quarter, which spent time in the Mojave Desert and Santa Cruz Island. Dr.
Travis Longcore, one of the course instructors, commented, "He had
incredible promise, quiet confidence, and unwavering dedication to his
academic work." He worked for three years in the laboratory of Professor
Victoria Sork, both as a work-study student assistant and an undergraduate
researcher. Prof. Sork remembers him as a gentle spirit, an extremely
careful researcher, and a fun member of her lab group. Others in the
department recall his passion for being in nature and his love of animals.
Joseph Epperson is survived by his mother, Nanette Pratini of Riverside,
father Bryan Epperson of East Lansing, Michigan, and many family members
and friends.
The Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology has established a scholarship fund to support an outstanding student with financial need who would like to participate in one of the Field Biology Quarters next year. Anyone who wants to contribute to that fund can do so by going to the Giving page of our website. Please select "Joseph Epperson Memorial Scholarship". If you prefer to send a check, please mail it to Professor Victoria Sork and make the check payable to "UC Regents." All funds will be added to the scholarship and not put into endowment.
Leonard Muscatine, Distinguished Emeritus Professor
Professor Len Muscatine passed away at home on Tuesday, April 10, after a long fight with cancer. Professor Muscatine was a distinguished scientist and valuable member of our faculty throughout his career. From a memorial article in Coral Reefs (2007) 26:731-739:
"The late Leonard (Len) Muscatine (1932-2007) played a key role in the development of the understanding of algal-invertebrate symbioses. For over 40 years (1958-2005), Professor Muscatine was an inspirational mentor and leader in this field, guiding both the ideas and lives of generations of scientists, many of whom are still active in this research area. His scientific contributions were instrumental in crafting the understanding of a fundamentally important part of our world; that of endosymbiosis, where two or more independent organisms live together in a cellular harmony that belies a complex set of molecular and evolutionary interactions. Muscatine's research career was defined by investigations aimed at unraveling these interactions, particularly the specificity, metabolism, regulation, and disintegration of algal-invertebrate symbiosis. His gentle interrogation of his students and colleagues as to 'What is the question?' led more than often to the focused research that yielded the insightful answers that still resonate today as the most current in the field.
George Bartholomew, Distinguished Emeritus Professor
George Bartholomew, a distinguished emeritus professor of our department, passed away on October 2, 2006. Bart was an amazing scientist who played an important role in shaping the history of our department and never lost his interest in our department. Through the Bartholomew Research Fellowship Awards, he continued to support our graduate students and he enjoyed the reports on the activities of the recipients.
Bart was one of the most significant figures in the post World War II history of our Department (then called Zoology, later Biology). He was a central player in the transition (in the later 1950s) from a department that was run in a somewhat authoritarian and centralized fashion to our present egalitarian, participatory, and shared governance mode. He was a low-key, soft spoken, thoughtful, creative, and balanced observer and participant in departmental and campus affairs for about 40 years. He served terms as chair of both Zoology and Botany (at the time a separate department) and helped facilitate the merger of the two that produced Biology. He was an important influence on the founding of the Molecular Biology Institute and on the recruitment to the department of the first group of molecularly oriented faculty before the Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology was formed.
George Bartholomew was one of our best teachers, at both undergraduate and graduate levels. He was presented with a campus Distinguished Teaching Award in recognition of his mentoring of graduate students. A high proportion of his students and postdocs went on to become significant figures in their own fields of study. He worked extensively for many years with the then Film Unit of University Extension (a precursor of part of OID), developing with them a series of teaching documentary films that are still widely used. With Malcolm Gordon and Alan Grinnell (then a member of the department) and two other co-authors he was a major contributor to the development and production of a textbook of comparative ecological physiology that had four editions over 20 years and was both influential in the development of its field and widely adopted internationally.
He was a highly creative and productive researcher, recognized worldwide as one of the three principal founders of the fields of comparative physiological ecology and ecological physiology (the other two being Per Scholander and Knut Schmidt-Nielsen). He had a broad gauge synthetic view of the functional adaptations of organisms to natural environments (he did some important work on plants in addition to many studies of animals), bringing together the fields of physiology, behavior, and ecology. He was a major pioneer in the study of desert organisms and was a central player in the establishment of his fields of research in both Australia and South Africa. He was a strong advocate for studying organisms in the field as well as in the laboratory. He was flexible in the research methods he used, bringing new technologies to field investigations.
The stature of Dr. Bartholomew's contribution to science was recognized by his elections to the National Academy of Science in 1985 and to the National Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1981. He was the first recipient of the Grinnell Medal, awarded by the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at the University of California, Berkeley. The list of his professional achievements is extensive. George Bartholomew will always be a part of the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology as one who represents the high standards of research and teaching that we strive for. In fact, our current mission to pursue the study of ecological and evolutionary processes through studies of natural populations is epitomized by his own research priorities.
George Bartholomew has left a lasting legacy to science and to the many, many former students and colleagues who were stimulated and motivated by his passion for science and wisdom about how organisms function.
There is more information about Professor Bartholomew at http://www.eeb.ucla.edu/bartholomew.php?p=fellow. Memorial gifts may be made to the George A. Bartholomew Fund at UCLA; to contribute to the fund, go to the Giving page of our website.
Stanley Albright, Superintendent of Yosemite National Park and UCLA Biology Alumnus
From an article in the Los Angeles Times by Valerie J. Nelson, Times Staff Writer August 29, 2006
"His efforts in Alaska helped double the size of the national park system in 1980. In the 1990s, he played a key role in the creation of massive Death Valley National Park and was sent to Yosemite to rebuild after an epic flood. . . . 'Most will never know the full impact of Stan's leadership in shaping the national park system,' Michael Tollefson, who was named superintendent of Yosemite National Park in 2003, said in a statement. Albright had been Yosemite's superintendent from 1997 to 1999.
"During the Reagan administration, Albright served under Interior Secretary James G. Watt, who was known for favoring profit over preservation when it came to federal land. A resolute conservationist, Albright preserved many national park programs that Watt had sought to dismantle, according to the park service.
"He played a key role in the passage of the 1994 California Desert Protection Act, which expanded Death Valley National Monument into a national park; the park's 3.4 million acres make it the largest national park in the contiguous United States. The act also upgraded Joshua Tree National Monument to a national park and created the Mojave National Preserve.
"Albright was born in Oakland and grew up in Bishop, Calif. . . . After serving in the Army during the Korean War, he graduated from UCLA in 1958 with a degree in biology. His first job out of college was as a fire lookout in the Inyo National Forest, and he later managed concessions at the Grand Canyon. As state director of the National Park Service in Alaska in the 1970s, Albright helped lay the groundwork for the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980, which created 10 national parks and expanded several others. The 44 million acres effectively doubled the size of the national park system."
Memorial donations may be made to the Albright fund at Yosemite Institute, http://www.yni.org , P.O. Box 487, Yosemite, CA 95389, or the Willamette Falls Hospice, 1505 Division St., Oregon City, OR 97045.