Karl Sax
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Karl Sax (November 2, 1892 – October 8, 1973) was an American botanist and geneticist, noted for his research in cytogenetics and the effect of radiation on chromosomes.
Early life and education
Sax was born in
In college, he met and married
He went on to do his doctoral work at Harvard University, receiving his D.Sc. in 1922.
He served as a private in the
Scientific career
In 1918, Sax took a job as an instructor in the Department of Genetics at the
In 1928, he left Orono to take a teaching position in Harvard's genetics department at the Bussey Institution. However, the department was dissolved before his arrival, and he transferred to the cytology department at the university's Biological Laboratories in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Contribution to radiation cytology
In 1938 Sax published a paper entitled "Chromosome Aberrations Induced by X-rays," which demonstrated that radiation could induce major
Plant breeding
Sax bred new varieties of ornamental trees and shrubs including
A cultivar of Forsythia bred by Sax was named 'Karl Sax' by a nurseryman. In 1946, he was appointed acting director of Harvard's Arnold Arboretum, becoming the director in 1947, a post he held until 1954.[citation needed]
Demography
Sax was also interested in human demography. In 1955, he wrote Standing Room Only: The Challenge to Overpopulation, on the consequences of uncontrolled human population growth.[2] Sax became associated with Planned Parenthood and was a member of the Population Association of America.
Honors
Sax was an elected member of the
In 1959, he retired and moved to Media, Pennsylvania, where he continued his work on plant breeding.
Karl Sax died on October 8, 1973, aged 80, at Bryn Mawr Hospital, Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, U.S.
References
- ^ "Prunus Hally Jolivette". Archived from the original on 2010-04-10. Retrieved 2010-03-16.
- ISSN 0033-5770.
- ^ "Cranbrook Institute of Science Director's Papers". Cranbrook website. Retrieved Dec. 27, 2016.
- ^ International Plant Names Index. Sax.
- "Dr. Karl Sax Dies". New York Times, Oct. 10, 1973.
- Smocovitis, V. B. Sax, Karl. 'American National Biography Online. Oxford University Press
- Swanson, C. P. 1988. Cytogenetics and Karl Sax. Genetics 119:5–7
External links
- Biographical Memoir of Karl Sax written by Carl P. Swanson and Norman H. Giles for the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, a superb source of information about Sax and his work