Captivated by Chromosomes

Peering through a microscope since age 14, Joseph Gall, now 89, still sees wonder at the other end.

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JOSEPH GALL
Staff Member, Department of Embryology
Carnegie Institution for Science, Baltimore, Maryland
1983 American Society for Cell Biology E.B. Wilson Medal
2004 Lifetime Achievement Award of the Society for Developmental Biology
2006 Albert Lasker Special Achievement Award in Medical Research
COURTESY JOSEPH GALL


Cell biologist Joseph Gall, who was born in 1928, grew up spending lots of time outside, observing and collecting frogs, butterflies, and other insects. “There was no television when I was younger. After school, I roamed around the neighborhood and the nearby woods,” says Gall, now a staff scientist at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Baltimore, Maryland. “My mother used to make me dozens of butterfly nets and made sure I always had science books.” Gall attributes his lifelong interest in science to her. “She was the first person in her family to go to college. This was in the 1920s and was rare for a woman. After college, she immediately married my father, a lawyer, had my older brother, and became a homemaker. ...

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Meet the Author

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    Anna Azvolinsky

    Anna Azvolinsky is a freelance science writer based in New York City.

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