The Scientist Magazine® - Authors

Going Boldly Forth

Published: January 1, 2013

Gregory Hannon believes in taking risks—an approach that’s enabled him to make exciting new discoveries in the world of small RNAs.

An Epi Phenomenon

Published: December 1, 2012

While exploring the genetics of a rare type of tumor, Stephen Baylin discovered an epigenetic modification that occurs in most every cancer—a finding he’s helping bring to the clinic.

(Re)Programming Director

Published: October 1, 2012

Unwilling to accept the finality of terminal differentiation, Helen Blau has honed techniques that showcase the flexibility of cells to adopt different identities.

Taking the Long View

Published: September 1, 2012

In exploring how embryos take shape, John Wallingford has identified a key pathway involved in vertebrate development—and human disease.

Associate Professor in Molecular Cell & Developmental Biology at the University of Texas at Austin, John Wallingford, makes his living using cutting-edge microscopic techniques to watch developmental events unfold in real time.

Fly Guy

Published: August 1, 2012

For Michael Dickinson, Drosophila are more than winged gene holders—they’re sophisticated systems for translating sensory information into flight instructions.

Sweet Smell of Success

Published: July 1, 2012

With persistence and pluck, Leslie Vosshall managed to snatch insect odorant receptors from the jaws of experimental defeat.

Hacking the Genome

Published: June 1, 2012

In pondering genome structure and function, evolutionary geneticist Laurence Hurst has arrived at some unanticipated conclusions about how natural selection has molded our DNA.

Truth and Beauty

Published: April 1, 2012

With strong foundations in both art and science, Ahna Skop has been able to capture the marvel of—and mechanisms behind—cytokinesis.

Model Citizen

Published: March 1, 2012

With an eye to understanding animal regeneration, Alejandro Sánchez Alvarado has turned a freshwater planarian into a model system to watch.

High-Tech Choir Master

Published: January 1, 2012

Elaine Mardis can make DNA sequencers sing, generating genome data that shed light on evolution and disease.

Critical Connections

Published: December 1, 2011

Through a series of sustained collaborations, Joshua Sanes has deciphered the molecular synergy that guides synapse formation.

Beyond Expectation

Published: September 1, 2011

Philippa “Pippa” Marrack has made some unanticipated discoveries about how the immune system functions in health and disease.

3-D Seer

Published: August 1, 2011

Dissatisfied with the uncertainty of crystallography, Ned Seeman invented a new way of assembling the molecules that encompass the logic of life.

Foresight

Published: July 1, 2011

Studying the earliest events in visual development, Carla Shatz has learned the importance of looking at one’s data with open eyes—and an open mind.

Making the Gradient

Published: May 25, 2011

Ron Kaback didn’t believe that electrochemical gradients could power the transport of sugars and amino acids across cell membranes—until he proved that they do.

Harvesting Ideas

Published: April 1, 2011

Joy Ward is reaping the rewards of her studies on how plants handle global climate change—gathering academic accolades and presidential embraces along the way.

Ready, Reset, Go

Published: March 1, 2011

Rudolf Jaenisch enjoys climbing mountains, rafting rapids, and unraveling the secrets of pluripotency—knowledge that could someday lead to personalized regenerative medicine.

Impure Genius

Published: February 1, 2011

Lewis Cantley has made a career of turning chemical contaminants into groundbreaking discoveries—including novel lipids, potent inhibitors, and kinases involved in cancer.

Watt Fun!

Published: January 1, 2011

Her doctoral advisor told her to amuse herself, and Fiona Watt has done just that—probing individual stem cells and determining the genes and molecules that direct them to differentiate or cause them to contribute to cancer.