From Chromosomes to Mobile Genetic Elements: The Life and Work of Nobel Laureate Barbara McClintock

This biography of Nobel Laureate Barbara McClintock (1902-1992) places her life and work in its social, scientific and personal context. The author examines the development of Barbara McClintock’s scientific work and her influence upon individuals and upon the fields of cytogenetics and evolutionary biology in the period from 1902 to the present. The history documents years of McClintock’s notable and lauded scientific work long before she discovered and named transposable elements in the mid-1940s for which she ultimately received the Nobel Prize. The biography employs documented evidence to expose, demystify, and provide clarity for legends and misinterpretations of McClintock’s life and work.

Key Features

• Exposes and demystifies myths and legends told about McClintock’s time in Missouri
• Clarifies the changing language of genes and genetics
• Places in perspective the history of McClintock’s research
• Documents McClintock’s family and early life before college
• Provides documented details of McClintock’s time in Nazi Germany

Dr. Lee B. Kass received her Ph.D. in Botany and Genetics from Cornell University after earning a B.S. in biology from The City University of New York. She did Postdoctoral research at The University of Cambridge-UK and Vanderbilt University. She has served on the faculties of The University of Cambridge, University of Tennessee-Nashville, Elmira College, The College of the Bahamas, Cornell University and West Virginia University-Morgantown. Kass has authored, edited or co-edited twelve books, and authored or co-authored numerous book chapters, proceedings papers, and articles in scientific journals. She is a member of the Botanical Society of America, The Bahamas National Trust, The Maize Genetics Cooperation, and a former member of many botanical organizations. Kass was chair of the Historical Section of the Botanical Society of America for many years. She established the Elmira College Herbarium, and currently serves on the Science Advisory Committee of the Bahamas National Trust. Among her awards is the Josef Stein Award, for excellence in teaching and scholarly achievement, various research grants, and a Fulbright Scholar Award, during which time she and her spouse, Dr. Robert E. Hunt, established the National Herbarium of the Bahamas. Currently, she is recognized in American Men of Science and Marquis Who’s Who. She is Visiting/Adjunct Professor at Cornell University, and at West Virginia University-Morgantown. Her research focuses on history of botany, and biodiversity and reproductive biology of Bahamian plants.