RARE "Human Genome Pioneer" Robert L. Sinsheimer Hand Signed 3X5 Card For Sale

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RARE "Human Genome Pioneer" Robert L. Sinsheimer Hand Signed 3X5 Card:
$499.99

Up for sale a RARE! "UCLA Chancellor" Robert L. Sinsheimer Hand Signed 3X5 Card. 

ES-5983E

Robert L. Sinsheimer, an internationally

acclaimed biologist and chancellor emeritus of the University of California,

Santa Cruz, died on April 22 in Santa Barbara, California. He was 97. As a

scientist, Sinsheimer made significant breakthroughs in genetic research by

artificially creating functional strands of DNA. He was also one of the first

scientists to propose and seriously consider that a concerted effort be

undertaken to sequence the human genome. “Dr. Sinsheimer left an indelible mark

on campus and in the greater scientific world,” UC Santa Cruz Chancellor George

Blumenthal said. “He was a tireless advocate for UC Santa Cruz and was widely

respected by the campus community.” In 1985, Sinsheimer convened a group of

eminent scientists at UC Santa Cruz to discuss the feasibility of sequencing

the human genome. This historic workshop planted the idea for what eventually

became the Human Genome Project, and UCSC scientists led by David Haussler

ultimately played a crucial role in assembling the first human genome sequence

in 2000. Sinsheimer was also an outspoken advocate of science's accountability

to society. As early as the mid-1960s, he came to realize that advances in

genetics would have profound social consequences. When recombinant DNA

technology arose in the 1970s, giving scientists the ability to splice together

genetic material from different organisms, he used his position as an

acknowledged authority in the field to warn of potential hazards. And when he

proposed sequencing the human genome, he hoped at the same time to focus

attention on the social and ethical concerns such a project would inevitably

raise. Sinsheimer served as chancellor of UC Santa Cruz from 1977 to 1987. He

oversaw growth in academic programs and student enrollments at the campus

during an era of tight educational budgets. A new undergraduate major in

computer engineering was established, and graduate enrollments doubled from 350

to 700. New graduate programs and important new research activities were

developed during his tenure, including major expansions in linguistics and

high-energy physics and new research programs in seismology, agroecology, and

applied economics. Sinsheimer was also involved in writing a new academic plan

for the campus. Sinsheimer's distinguished career as a teacher and

administrator included nine years as chairman of the Division of Biology at the

California Institute of Technology. After his tenure at UC Santa Cruz,

Sinsheimer joined the faculty at UC Santa Barbara as a professor of molecular,

cellular, and developmental biology. He retired in 1990, but remained active in

laboratory research for many years. In 2001, Sinsheimer received the University

of California's Presidential Medal for his contributions to knowledge and to higher

education. Then-UC President Richard C. Atkinson presented the medal at a

ceremony during the UCSC Human Genome Symposium, noting the role Sinsheimer

played in initiating the Human Genome Project, his achievements as a biologist,

and his leadership of the UC Santa Cruz campus. Sinsheimer was born in

Washington, D.C., and attended high school in Chicago. In 1936, at the age of

16, he enrolled at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), intending

to become a chemical engineer. Instead, he joined a new 5-year program leading

to a combined S.B. and S.M. degree in quantitative biology and biological

engineering, graduating in 1941. His intention to pursue graduate studies in

biochemistry was interrupted by World War II, during which time he worked on

aircraft radar as a staff member of the MIT Radiation Laboratory. Following the

war he enrolled in the fledgling biophysics graduate program at MIT, earning

his Ph.D. in 1949. Sinsheimer taught briefly at MIT before moving to Iowa State

College in 1949, where he was a professor of biophysics. In 1957, he accepted

the post of professor of biophysics at Caltech, where he worked for the next 20

years before accepting the position of chancellor at UC Santa Cruz. A member of

the National Academy of Sciences, Sinsheimer received numerous awards and

honors for his achievements. He was named California Scientist of the Year in

1968. He authored some 200 publications in his various areas of research

interest, as well as an autobiography, The Strands of a Life: The Science of

DNA and the Art of Education, published in 1994.