Lynn Margulis

Lynn Margulis
Margulis in 2005
Born
Lynn Petra Alexander

(1938-03-05)March 5, 1938
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
DiedNovember 22, 2011(2011-11-22) (aged 73)
Amherst, Massachusetts, U.S.
Alma mater
Known for
Spouses
  • ​
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    (m. 1957; div. 1965)​
  • Thomas Margulis
    ​
    ​
    (m. 1967; div. 1980)​
Children4
Awards
Scientific career
FieldsBiology
Institutions
Thesis An Unusual Pattern of Thymidine Incorporation in Euglena  (1965)
Doctoral advisorMax Alfert

Lynn Margulis (born Lynn Petra Alexander; March 5, 1938 – November 22, 2011) was an American evolutionary biologist, and was the primary modern proponent for the significance of symbiosis in evolution. In particular, Margulis transformed and fundamentally framed current understanding of the evolution of cells with nuclei by proposing it to have been the result of symbiotic mergers of bacteria. Margulis was also the co-developer of the Gaia hypothesis with the British chemist James Lovelock, proposing that the Earth functions as a single self-regulating system, and was the principal defender and promulgator of the five kingdom classification of Robert Whittaker.

Throughout her career, Margulis' work could arouse intense objections,[1][2] and her formative paper, "On the Origin of Mitosing Cells", appeared in 1967 after being rejected by about fifteen journals.[3] Still a junior faculty member at Boston University at the time, her theory that cell organelles such as mitochondria and chloroplasts were once independent bacteria was largely ignored for another decade, becoming widely accepted only after it was powerfully substantiated through genetic evidence. Margulis was elected a member of the US National Academy of Sciences in 1983. President Bill Clinton presented her the National Medal of Science in 1999. The Linnean Society of London awarded her the Darwin-Wallace Medal in 2008.

Margulis was a strong critic of neo-Darwinism.[4] Her position sparked lifelong debate with leading neo-Darwinian biologists, including Richard Dawkins,[5] George C. Williams, and John Maynard Smith.[1]: 30, 67, 74–78, 88–92  Margulis' work on symbiosis and her endosymbiotic theory had important predecessors, going back to the mid-19th century – notably Andreas Franz Wilhelm Schimper, Konstantin Mereschkowski, Boris Kozo-Polyansky, and Ivan Wallin – and Margulis not only promoted greater recognition for their contributions, but personally oversaw the first English translation of Kozo-Polyansky's Symbiogenesis: A New Principle of Evolution, which appeared the year before her death. Many of her major works, particularly those intended for a general readership, were collaboratively written with her son Dorion Sagan.

In 2002, Discover magazine recognized Margulis as one of the 50 most important women in science.[6]

  1. ^ a b Sagan, Dorion, ed. (2012). Lynn Margulis: The Life and Legacy of a Scientific Rebel. White River Junction: Chelsea Green. ISBN 978-1603584470.
  2. ^ "Lynn Margulis". The Telegraph. December 13, 2011. Archived from the original on January 12, 2022. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference BrockmanInterview was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Teresi, Dick (June 17, 2011). "Lynn Margulis says she's not controversial, she's right". Discover Magazine. Discover Interview. No. April 2011. Retrieved June 22, 2023. [Broken link]
  5. ^ Gilbert, Scott F.; Sapp, Jan; Tauber, Alfred I. (2012). "A Symbiotic View of Life: We have never been individuals". The Quarterly Review of Biology. 87 (4): 325–341. doi:10.1086/668166. PMID 23397797. S2CID 14279096.
  6. ^ Svitil, Kathy (November 13, 2002). "The 50 Most Important Women in Science". Discover Magazine. Retrieved May 1, 2019.