Object Record
Images
Metadata
Catalog Number |
2009.77 |
Object Name |
Medallion |
Title |
Theodosius Dobzhansky Medallion |
Artist |
Unknown |
Date |
1967 |
Description |
Obverse: Overlapping profiles of man and woman with allegorical figure to the right, holding a branch and gesturing to a building at top. Reverse: crest with "HELSINGIENSIS VNIVERSITAS" around perimeter and "T.H. DOBZHANSKY 1967" on outer rim. |
Label |
Theodosius Dobzhansky was a leading biologist and geneticist, elected to the APS in 1942. The APS Library houses his papers, which include correspondence and 54 notebooks documenting his career from 1917 to 1975. Dobzhansky was an important figure in the modern evolutionary synthesis, the mid-20th-century effort to merge Charles Darwin's theories of evolution with Mendelian genetics. Born in Ukraine in 1900, Dobzhansky moved to the United States as a young scholar. At Columbia University and the California Institute of Technology in the 1930s, he worked with Thomas Hunt Morgan, who established the fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster) as a model organism for genetic studies. Dobzhansky soon distinguished himself in zoology and genetics, particularly with his population studies of wild fruit flies that showed genetic similarities among regional varieties. Dobzhansky and his colleagues also argued against widely-held eugenics theories before World War II, instead believing that social or personality traits were not genetic in origin. Dobzhansky received many honors and awards in his lifetime, including the National Medal of Science and the Gold Medal Award for Distinguished Achievement in Science from the American Museum of Natural History. Helsinki University in Finland apparently awarded Dobzhansky this medal in 1967 to honor his scientific work. |
Dimensions |
D-0.25 Dia-2.75 inches |
Credit line |
American Philosophical Society |
Search Terms |
20th century twentieth century scientist award |