Haldane, J.B.S.

Haldane, J.B.S.

▪ British geneticist
in full  John Burdon Sanderson Haldane  
born Nov. 5, 1892, Oxford, Oxfordshire, Eng.
died Dec. 1, 1964, Bhubaneswar, India
 British geneticist, biometrician, physiologist, and popularizer of science who opened new paths of research in population genetics and evolution.

      Son of the noted physiologist John Scott Haldane, he began studying science as assistant to his father at the age of eight and later received formal education in the classics at Eton College and at New College, Oxford (M.A., 1914). After World War I he served as a fellow of New College and then taught at the University of Cambridge (1922–32), the University of California, Berkeley (1932), and the University of London (1933–57).

      In the 1930s Haldane became a Marxist. He joined the British Communist Party and assumed editorship of the party's London paper, the Daily Worker. Later, he became disillusioned with the official party line and with the rise of the controversial Soviet biologist Trofim D. Lysenko. In 1957 Haldane moved to India, where he took citizenship and headed the government Genetics and Biometry Laboratory in Orissa.

      Haldane, R.A. Fisher, and Sewall Wright, in separate mathematical arguments based on analyses of mutation rates, population size, patterns of reproduction, and other factors, related Darwinian evolutionary theory and Gregor Mendel's concepts of heredity. Haldane also contributed to the theory of enzyme action and to studies in human physiology. He possessed a combination of analytic powers, literary abilities, a wide range of knowledge, and a force of personality that produced numerous discoveries in several scientific fields and proved stimulating to an entire generation of research workers.

      Haldane's major works include Daedalus (1924), Animal Biology (with British evolutionist Julian Huxley, 1927), The Inequality of Man (1932), The Causes of Evolution (1932), The Marxist Philosophy and the Sciences (1938), Science Advances (1947), and The Biochemistry of Genetics (1954). Selected Genetic Papers of J.B.S. Haldane, ed. by Krishna R. Dronamraju, was published in 1990.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Haldane — (Half Dane) is the surname of an aristocratic Scottish family which includes various scientists and churchmen: * * A. R. B. Haldane, social historian and author * Charlotte Haldane, British feminist writer * Daniel Rutherford Haldane, Scottish… …   Wikipedia

  • Haldane — ist der Name folgender Personen F. Duncan M. Haldane (* 1951), britischer Physiker J. B. S. Haldane (1892–1964), indischer Genetiker britischer Herkunft John Scott Haldane (1860–1936), schottischer Physiologe Richard Burdon Haldane, 1. Viscount… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Haldane —   [ hɔːldeɪn],    1) John Scott, britischer Physiologe und philosophischer Schriftsteller, * Edinburgh 2. 5. 1860, ✝ Oxford 14. 3. 1936, Bruder von 2); Professor in Dundee, Oxford und Birmingham. Seine Arbeiten über die Physiologie der… …   Universal-Lexikon

  • Haldane — [hôl′dān] 1. J(ohn) B(urdon) S(anderson) 1892 1964; Eng. biologist & writer 2. Richard Burdon [bʉr′dən] 1st Viscount Haldane of Cloan 1856 1928; Scot. statesman & philosopher: uncle of J. B. S. Haldane …   English World dictionary

  • Haldane — noun 1. Scottish geneticist (son of John Haldane) who contributed to the development of population genetics; a popularizer of science and a Marxist (1892 1964) • Syn: ↑J. B. S. Haldane, ↑John Burdon Sanderson Haldane • Instance Hypernyms:… …   Useful english dictionary

  • Haldane — Cette page d’homonymie répertorie les différents sujets et articles partageant un même nom. Patronyme Le nom de Haldane est porté par plusieurs personnalités (par ordre alphabétique) : Don Haldane (1914 ), réalisateur, scénariste et acteur… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Haldane — Recorded in a wide variety of spellings, including Halden, Haldon, Haldane, Haldene, and Haldin, this is an English or Scottish medieval surname. It is generally considered to be locational, and if so is either from one of the several places… …   Surnames reference

  • Haldane — /hawl dayn/, n. 1. John Burdon Sanderson /berr dn san deuhr seuhn/, 1892 1964, English biochemist, geneticist, and writer. 2. his father, John Scott, 1860 1936, Scottish physiologist and writer. 3. Richard Burdon (Viscount Haldane of Cloan), 1856 …   Universalium

  • Haldane — (as used in expressions) Haldane, J(ohn) B(urdon) S(anderson) Haldane, John Scott Haldane (de Cloane), Richard Burdon, 1 vizconde …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Haldane — I. biographical name J(ohn) B(urdon) S(anderson) 1892 1964 son of J.S. British biologist II. biographical name John Scott 1860 1936 British physiologist III. biographical name Richard Burdon 1856 1928 Viscount Haldane of Cloan ; brother of J.S.… …   New Collegiate Dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”