Edward J. Steele
Edward J. Steele | |
|---|---|
Darwin, Australia | |
| Citizenship | Australian |
| Known for | Somatic Hypermutation |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Biology Virology |
| Institutions | University of Adelaide [1971-1975], University of Toronto (Ontario Cancer Institute) [1977-1980], Australian National University (John Curtin School of Medical Research [1975-1977, 1981-1985], University of Wollongong [1985-2003], CYO’Connor ERADE Foundation 24 Genomics Rise, Piara Waters, WA, Australia[2009-2010, 2014 - ] |
| Doctoral advisor | Professor Derrick Rowley, Department of Microbiology, University of Adelaide 1970 -1975
Qualifications : BSc (Hons), PhD, ASCIA, AIMS, ASI ( Membership Key = ASCIA- Australian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy; AIMS, Australian Institute of Medical Sciences; ASI – Australian Society for Immunology) |
Edward J. "Ted" Steele is an Australian molecular
Scientific interests
Ted Steele hypothesized the RNA/RT-based mechanism of somatic hypermutation.
This is known as
During the 1980s and 1990s, Ted Steele clashed with the scientific establishment, particularly in the UK, over this hypothesis and his support for Lamarck's place in modern science. Steele has stated publicly in an interview with the ABC program Lateline that his controversial theories have had a strong impact on his career: "To be branded a heretic and a pariah meant that my career to keep doing research in this area were extremely limited."[3]
From 2010 to 2018, Ted Steele continued to explore
Dismissal and dispute
In January 2001, Steele made several allegations to the media in regard to 'soft' marking resulting in the upgrading of full fee paying international students. Steele was summarily dismissed by UoW's Vice-Chancellor Gerard Sutton, stating that the university's reputation was "placed at a serious and imminent risk as a result of Associate Professor Steele's claims." Steele declared his dismissal unfair and instituted legal proceedings. The case received wide media coverage.[4]
In August 2001, the Australian Federal Court found that the University of Wollongong had breached its staff enterprise agreement by not following correct conduct and dismissal procedures in Steele's case. Following the verdict Steele expressed publicly that he wanted his job back.[5]
On 5 April 2002, UoW Vice Chancellor Gerard Sutton acceded to NTEU demands and reinstated Steele to his position within the Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Wollongong. It was made public that Steele's reinstatement was unconditional and involved backpay. President of the National Tertiary Education Union, Carolyn Allport, announced the importance of the victory and precedent that the court's ruling set. "The NTEU has said all along that Dr Steele was dismissed illegally. The union's position has been completely vindicated by the findings of four judges of the Federal Court and Dr Steele's subsequent reinstatement. The reinstatement comes after a 15 month legal and political campaign by the NTEU. It is a victory for all NTEU members because it clearly demonstrates that university staff cannot be dismissed without a proper and fair hearing. This requirement is the fundamental protection of intellectual freedom in Australia's universities and the successful campaign to reinstate Dr Steele has reaffirmed that protection for all Australian university staff and for the community that our universities serve."[6]
The unfair dismissal issue was resolved on 6 July 2002 when Steele and the University of Wollongong came to a confidential agreement.
COVID-19
In 2020, Steele, along with researcher
Selected publications
- Steele, E.J.- Somatic Selection and Adaptive Evolution: On the Inheritance of Acquired Characters. 2nd Edition. Revised with an author's Postscript, University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1981.
- Steele, E.J., Lindley, R.A. & Blanden, R.V. Lamarck's Signature: How retrogenes are changing Darwin's natural selection paradigm. Allen & Unwin, Frontiers of Science: Series Editor Paul Davies, Sydney, Australia, 1998. In the US, published by Addison-Wesley-Longman under Perseus Book imprint, Reading, MT, 1998
- Honeywill, Ross - Lamarck's Evolution: two centuries of genius and jealousy. Pier 9 (Murdoch Books), Sydney. 2008
See also
References
- ^ The implications of Steele's soma-to-germline feedback for the safety of somatic gene therapy in humans
- Honeywill, Ross (2008). "ESSAY: The Case for Meta-Lamarckism – Lamarck's Evolution". Retrieved 1 August 2016.
- Australian Broadcasting Corp. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
- ^ When dollars do all the talking - "The sacking of an academic suggests that commercial issues outweigh free speech" The Australian, 18 April 2001, p. 35 (Brian Martin)[1]
- ^ Story from ABC News
- ^ "Ted Steele reinstated - University of Wollongong finally comes to its senses NTEU archives". Archived from the original on 7 September 2007. Retrieved 13 August 2007.
- ^ Astronomy.com. 31 August 2020. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
Further reading
- Aban Contractor (28 February 2002). "Axed academic treated 'worse than murderer'". The Sydney Morning Herald. Sydney, Australia: Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 28 February 2002. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
- Aban Contractor (29 March 2002). "Sacked whistleblower gets university job back". Retrieved 1 November 2015.
- Roger Lewin. (1981). Lamarck Will not Lie down. Science, New Series, Vol. 213, No. 4505. pp. 316–321.
- Michael B. Moll. (1983). Somatic Selection and Adaptive Evolution by E. J. Steele. The American Biology Teacher, Vol. 45, No. 3. pp. 174–175.
- Eric Nisbet-Brown and Thomas G. Wegmann. (1981). Is Acquired Immunological Tolerance Genetically Transmissible?. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Vol. 78, No. 9. pp. 5826–5828.
- G. Lawrence Vankin. (1981). Somatic Selection and Adaptive Evolution: On the Inheritance of Acquired Characters by E. J. Steele . Systematic Zoology, Vol. 30, No. 1. pp. 111–115.
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