Awards & Winners

National Medal of Science for Biological Sciences

National Medal of Science

Date Established : 1959-08-25

Check all the winners of National Medal of Science for Biological Sciences presented under National Medal of Science since 1963 .


Lucille Shapiro

(For the pioneering discovery that the bacterial cell is controlled by an integrated genetic circuit functioning in time and space that serves as a systems engineering paradigm underlying cell differentiation and ultimately the generation of diversity in all organisms.)

Leroy Hood

(For pioneering spirit, passion, vision, inventions, and leadership combined with unique cross-disciplinary approaches resulting in entrepreneurial ventures, transformative commercial products, and several new scientific disciplines that have challenged and transformed the fields of biotechnology, genomics, proteomics, personalized medicine, and science education.)

Sallie W. Chisholm

(For contributions to the discovery and understanding of the dominant photosynthetic organisms in the ocean, promotion of the field of microbial oceanography, and influence on marine policy and management.)

Rudolf Jaenisch

(For improving our understanding of epigenetic regulation of gene expression: the biological mechanisms that affect how genetic information is variably expressed. His work has led to major advances in our understanding of mammalian cloning and embryonic stem cells.)

Ralph L. Brinster

(For his fundamental contributions to the development and use of transgenic mice. His research has provided experimental foundations and inspiration for progress in germline genetic modification in a range of species, which has generated a revolution in biology, medicine, and agriculture.)

Stanley B. Prusiner

(For his discovery of prions, the causative agent of bovine spongiform encephalopathy and other related neurodegenerative diseases, and his continuing efforts to develop effective methods for detecting and treating prion diseases.)

Susan Lindquist

(For her studies of protein folding, demonstrating that alternative protein conformations and aggregations can have profound and unexpected biological influences, facilitating insights in fields as wide-ranging as human disease, evolution, and biomaterials.)

Craig Venter

(For his dedication to the advancement of the science of genomics, his contributions to our understanding of its implications for society, and his commitment to the clear communication of information to the scientific community, the public, and policymakers.)

Elaine Fuchs

(For her pioneering use of cell biology and molecular genetics in mice to understand the basis of inherited diseases in humans and her outstanding contributions to our understanding of the biology of skin and its disorders, including her notable investigations of adult skin stem cells, cancers, and genetic syndromes.)

Francis Collins

(For his visionary contributions to the fields of genetics and genomics through the work of his own laboratory and his leadership of multiple international genomics initiatives, including the Human Genome Project.)

Robert Lefkowitz

(For his discovery of the seven transmembrane receptors, deemed the largest, most versatile, and most therapeutically accessible receptor signaling system, and for describing the general mechanism of their regulation, influencing all fields of medical practice.)

Bert W. O'Malley

(For his pioneering work on the molecular mechanisms of steroid hormone action and hormone receptors and coactivators, which has had a profound impact on our knowledge of steroid hormones in normal development and in diseases, including cancer.)

Rita R. Colwell

(For her in-depth research that has contributed to a greater understanding of the ecology,physiology, and evolution of marine microbes, most notably Vibrio cholerae, the causative agent of pandemic cholera, and which has elucidated critical links between environmental and human health.)

Lubert Stryer

(For his pioneering application of fluorescence spectroscopy, and particularly fluorescence resonance energy transfer, to the analysis of biological macromolecules; he elucidated the biochemical basis of signal amplification in vision and pioneered the development of high density micro-arrays for genetic analysis (gene chips). His influential biochemistry textbook has influenced and inspired millions of students.)

Rita R. Colwell

(For her in-depth research that has contributed to a greater understanding of the ecology, physiology, and evolution of marine microbes, most notably Vibrio cholerae, the causative agent of pandemic cholera, and which has elucidated critical links between environmental and human health.)

Lubert Stryer

(For his pioneering application of fluorescence spectroscopy, and particularly fluorescence resonance energy transfer, to the analysis of biological macromolecules; he elucidated the biochemical basis of signal amplification in vision and pioneered the development of high density micro-arrays for genetic analysis (gene chips). His influential biochemistry textbook has influenced and inspired millions of students.)

Anthony Fauci

(For pioneering the understanding of the mechanisms whereby the human immune system is regulated, and for his work on dissecting the mechanisms of pathogenesis of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that has served as the underpinning for the current strategies for the treatment of HIV disease.)

Torsten Wiesel

(For providing key insights into the operation of the visual system and for the discovery of the manner in which neural connections in the brain are made during development and how they are maintained.)

Norman Borlaug

(For his success in breeding semi-dwarf, disease-resistant high-yield wheat and instructing farmers in its cultivation under harsh growing conditions, thus providing a new high-quality food source for millions of people around the world.)

Phillip Allen Sharp

(For his contributions to understanding the biochemical pathway of RNA interference phenomena and for his use of RNA interference techniques to perform genetic analyses in mammalian cells.)

Thomas Starzl

(For his pioneering work in liver transplantation and his discoveries in immunosuppressive medication that advanced the field of organ transplantation.)

J. Michael Bishop

(For his discovery that the genes that determine the cancer-causing potential of certain viruses are counterparts of and derived from essential cellular genes, and that derangement of these cellular genes can lead to growth aberrations and cancer.)

Solomon H. Snyder

(For his major contributions to the understanding of neurotransmitters, their receptors in the nervous system, mechanisms of action of psychoactive drugs, and pathways of signal transduction in the brain.)

Charles Yanofsky

(For his fundamental contributions to our understanding of how genetic messages are read and translated into proteins, including important mechanisms of RNA-based gene regulation.)

James E. Darnell

(For his seminal scientific discoveries related to gene expression in animal cells, including pathways of RNA processing and signal transduction from the cell surface to genes in the nucleus, and for his contributions as a scientific educator)

Evelyn M. Witkin

(For her insightful and pioneering investigations on the genetics of DNA mutagenesis and DNA repair that have increased our understanding of processes as varied as evolution and the development of cancer.)

Francisco J. Ayala

(For his theoretical and experimental discoveries on the origin of species, genetic diversity, and population dynamics that led to a new understanding of biological evolution, and his distinguished contributions to education, the promotion of public understanding of science, and the philosophy and ethics of the scientific enterprise.)

Mario Capecchi

(For his groundbreaking research which has revolutionized biomedical research and provided a powerful tool for understanding disease mechanisms and gene functions.)

Ann Graybiel

(For her pioneering contributions to the understanding of the anatomy and physiology of the brain, including the structure, chemistry, and function of the pathways subserving thought and movement.)

Gene Likens

(For his discovery of acid rain in North America and his sustained leadership in developing the fields of ecology and ecosystem science.)

Victor A. McKusick

(For basic and applied contributions to the founding of medical genetics and the human genome project.)

Harold E. Varmus

(For his co-discovery of the cellular origins of retroviral oncogenes, which heralded a new era in the control of human cancer and for reinvigorating the nation's medical research enterprise.)

Nancy Coover Andreasen

(For her pivotal contributions to the social and behavioral sciences, through the integrative study of mind, brain, and behavior, by joining behavioral science with the technologies of neuroscience and neuroimaging in order to understand mental processes such as memory and creativity, and mental illnesses such as schizophrenia.)

Peter H. Raven

(For his contributions to the dynamics of plant systematics and evolution, the introduction of the concept of coevolution, and his major contribution to the international efforts to preserve biodiversity.)

Carl Woese

(For his brilliant and original insights, through molecular studies of RNA sequences, to explore the history of life on Earth. His vision has revolutionized our view of life's evolution and diversity.)

David Baltimore

(For his fundamental discoveries in virology, tumor biology and immunology, notably the discovery of how tumor-causing viruses multiply; for his devotion to building excellence in scientific institutions; and for his statesmanship in fostering communication between scientists and the general public.)

Jared Diamond

(For his exceptionally creative scholarship, including seminal research in physiology, ecology, conservation biology, and history; for his outstanding role in communicating science by explaining technical advances in widely understandable terms, and for his overwhelming dedication to science's role in building a better future.)

Lynn Margulis

(For her outstanding contributions to understanding of the development, structure, and evolution of living things, for inspiring new research in the biological, climatological, geological and planetary sciences, and for her extraordinary abilities as a teacher and communicator of science to the public.)

Bruce Ames

(For changing the direction of basic and applied research on mutation, cancer and aging by devising a simple, inexpensive test for environmental and natural mutagens, by identifying causes and effects of oxidative DNA damage, and by translating these findings into intelligible public policy recommendations on diet and cancer risk for the American people.)

Janet Rowley

(For revolutionizing cancer research, diagnosis, and treatment through her discovery of chromosomal translocations in cancer and her pioneering work on the relationship of prior treatment to recurring chromosome abnormalities, for epitomizing the bench to bedside philosophy in her application of basic discoveries to clinical medicine, and for her leadership nationally and internationally in the oncology and biomedical communities.)

James D. Watson

(For five decades of scientific and intellectual leadership in molecular biology, ranging from his co-discovery of the double helical structure of DNA to the launching of the Human Genome Project.)

Robert Weinberg

(For his contribution to the identification of cellular oncogenes and their role in cancer, which led to a better understanding of the molecular basis for cancer and its diagnosis and therapy.)

Ruth Patrick

(For her algal research, particularly the ecology and paleoecology of diatoms, and for elucidating the importance of biodiversity of aquatic life in ascertaining the natural condition of rivers and the effects of pollution.)

Alexander Rich

(For his numerous fundamental contributions to our knowledge of the structure and function of DNA and RNA, the central information carriers in living systems.)

Thomas Eisner

(For his seminal contributions in the fields of insect behavior and chemical ecology, and for his international efforts on biodiversity.)

Elizabeth F. Neufeld

(For her contributions to the understanding of the lysosomal storage diseases, demonstrating the strong linkage between basic and applied scientific investigation.)

Daniel Nathans

(For his seminal research in molecular genetics that formed a foundation for contemporary biotechnology.)

Salome Gluecksohn-Waelsch

(For her lifetime of work on developmental genetics, providing a large body of knowledge on the study of mammalian genetics.)

Maxine Singer

(For her outstanding scientific accomplishments and her deep concern for the societal responsibility of the scientist.)

Howard Martin Temin

(For his demonstration of the existence of RNA-directed DNA synthesis, leading to the discovery of proto-oncogenes within eukaryotic cells and the role of such genes in oncogenesis by viruses and other agents, laying the foundation for our knowledge of the replication of HIV, changing our ideas about evolution, and providing vital technology for genetic engineering and human gene therapy.)

Mary Ellen Avery

(For her discovery of the major cause of respiratory distress syndrome of premature infants and the straegies for treatment and prevention.)

G. Evelyn Hutchinson

(For his role in the emergence of ecology as a modern science, and introducing American geochemists to the importance of living organisms in the cycles of the elements. His work has proved the importance of environmental studies for society in general.)

Elvin A. Kabat

(For his seminal conributions in the field of immunology, and for bringing the field to its present prominence.)

Robert Kates

(For his fundamental contributions to the understanding of natural and man-made hazards, global environmental change, and the prevelance and persistence of world hunger.)

Salvador Luria

(For a lifetime devoted to applying genetics to viruses and bacteria, and for guiding the development of generations of students who have helped create the modern power of molecular biology.)

Folke K. Skoog

(For his pioneering work on plant hormones, including discovery of cyotkinins (a major class), chemical induction of organ formation and regulation of morphogenesis in plants, and contributions to the development of plant tissue culture as an experimental technique of fundamental importance in biotechnology.)

Paul Zamecnik

(For his pioneering research of protein biosynthesis, opening the door to biochemical attack, and paving the way for dissection of the genetic code; and for introducing the concept and method of antisense DNA as an approach to viral gene inhibition and chemotherapy.)

E. Donnall Thomas

(For his pioneering work in the science and application of transplantation biology to successful bone marrow transplantation in man for the treatment of cancer and related conditions.)

Baruj Benacerraf

(For his fundamental contributions to the understanding of the immune system, including much of the work which forms the basis of knowledge of transplantation immunology and regulatory function in the immune response.)

Herbert Boyer

(For his contributions to the basic research of the development of recombinant DNA technology. This seminal breakthrough has opened new vistas in experimental biology, and it has led directly to the development of the biotechnology industry.)

Daniel E. Koshland, Jr.

(For profoundly influencing the understanding of how proteins function through his induced-fit model of enzyme actrion. His incisive analysis of bacterial chemotaxis has led to a deeper understanding of the molecular basis of memory and adaptation.)

Edward B. Lewis

(For his demonstration and exploration of the genetic control of the development of body segments by homeotic genes.)

David G. Nathan

(For his contributions to the understanding of the pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of thalassemia; for his contributions to the understanding of disorders of red cell permeability; for his contributions to the understanding of the regulation of erythropoiesis; and for his contributions to the raining of a generation of hematologists and oncologists.)

Katherine Esau

(For her distinguished service to the American community of plant biologists, and for the excellence of her pioneering research, both basic and applied, on plant structure and development, which has spanned more than six decades; for her superlative performance as an educator, in the classroom and through her books; for the encouragement and inspiration she has given to a legion of young, aspiring plant biologists; and for providing a special role model for women in science.)

Viktor Hamburger

(For his steadfast work that led to the discovery and understanding of normally occurring neuronal death, nerve growth factor, and competitive relationships in the vertebrate nervous system.)

Philip Leder

(For his innovative studies that have significantly advanced knowledge and provided new directions for research in molecular genetics, immunology and cancer etiology.)

Joshua Lederberg

(For his work in bacterial genetics and immune cell single type antibody production; for his seminal research in artificial intelligence in biochemistry and medicine; and for his extensive advisory role in government, industry and international organizations that address themselves to the societal role of science.)

Roger Wolcott Sperry

(For his work on neurospecificity which showed how the intricate brain networks for behavior are effected through a system of chemical coding of individual cells, which has made fundamental contributions to the understanding of human nature.)

Harland G. Wood

(For his pioneering work on the biochemistry of CO2 fixation, for major contributions to medical education, and for leadership in biochemistry at the national and international levels.)

Michael Stuart Brown

(For their historic discovery of the basic mechanisms controlling cholesterol metabolism, opening the way to a new pharmacologic approach to the treatment of cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death and disability in the Western world.)

Stanley Norman Cohen

(For his discovery of methods for propagating and expressing the hereditary information of DNA introduced into living cells, thereby enabling the cloning of individual genes and the study of their structure and function.)

Joseph L. Goldstein

(For their historic discovery of the basic mechanisms controlling cholesterol metabolism, opening the way to a new pharmacologic approach to the treatment of cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death and disability in the Western world.)

Maurice Hilleman

(For his brilliant discoveries in basic research and ingenious inventiveness in creating vaccines that are the foundation for control of infectious diseases through immunologic intervention, preventing death and disability in millions of persons worldwide.)

Eric Kandel

(For discovering the first cellular and molecular mechanisms contributing to simple learning and memory.)

Rosalyn Sussman Yalow

(For her historic contributions to the discovery and development of radioimmunassay, a technique that employs radioactive isotopes to detect and measure the levels of insulin and hormones in the blood and body tissues.)

Rita Levi-Montalcini

(For a major breakthrough in neurobiology by her discovery of the Nerve Growth Factor and its effect on the growth of the sympathetic nervous system which set the stage for worldwide studies of the molecules involved in normal and malignant growth.)

Michael E. DeBakey

(For his pioneering medical innovations throughout his medical career and his unique ability to bring his vast professional knowledge to bear on public policy as a national and international medical statesman.)

Theodor Otto Diener

(For the discovery of viroids, the smallest known agent of infectious disease. This discovery has opened new avenues of molecular research into some of the most serious diseases afflicting plants, animals, and humans.)

Harry Eagle

(For his research in the development of reproducible conditions for the growth in culture of human and animal cells.)

Har Gobind Khorana

(For his innovative contributions that significantly contributed to our understanding of gene structure, membrane function and vision and for the work stimulated by his research which has had a major impact on the biological and chemical sciences.)

Stanley Cohen

(For his pioneering discovery and characterization of hormone-like growth factors which specifically control the multiplication of certain cells during growth and development.)

Donald Henderson

(For his leading role as chief architect and implementer of the World Health Organization's successful global eradication of smallpox.)

Vernon Benjamin Mountcastle

(For his fundamental research on how the brain functions in processing and perceiving the information gathered through the somatic sensory system.)

George Emil Palade

(For pioneering discoveries of a host of fundamental, highly organized structures in living cells through studies combining electron microscopy and biochemistry. These contributions stimulated the growth of the field of cell biology, which he continues to inspire through his own research and leadership active collaboration, and the training of new investigators.)

Joan A. Steitz

(For her major contributions to the basic molecular biology of bacterial and mammalian cells. Her discovery of at least six new components of the cellular machinery is an accomplishment of great distinction in both basic molecular biology and in the clinical treatment of autoimmune disease.)

Howard Bachrach

(For his pioneering research in molecular virology, including identification of the immunizing protein, and his collaborative role in the use of gene splicing to produce the first effective protein vaccine for use in animals or humans.)

Paul Berg

(For fundamental contributions to understanding the mechanisms of gene expression, for the development of recombinant DNA, and for a deep concern for its safe and humane application to medicine.)

Wendell L. Roelofs

(For his fundamental contributions to basic and applied biology in the field of insect pheromones, their chemical composition and blends, their biosysnthesis, how insects perceive and respond to them, and their use in insect pest management.)

Berta Scharrer

(For her pioneering contributions to establishing the concept of neurosecretion and the demonstration of the central role of neurosecretion and neuropeptides in the integration of animal function and development.)

Seymour Benzer

(For elucidating the fine structure of the gene and unifying the classical and molecular concepts of gene structure and function.)

Mildred Cohn

(For pioneering the use of stable isotopic tracers and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy in the study of the mechanisms of enzymatic catalysis.)

Glenn W. Burton

(For outstanding contributions to the biological sciences that have helped to feed the hungry, protect and beautify the environment, and provide recreation for millions.)

Philip Handler

(For his outstanding contributions to biochemical research, resulting in significant contributions to mankind, including research that led to a clearer understanding of pellagra, and for his national leadership in furthering the state of American science.)

Severo Ochoa

(For important contributions to biochemistry and molecular biology, discoveries that contributed greatly to our understanding of the mechanisms for energy generation within a cell, the mechanism whereby proteins are synthesized within a cell and the elucidation of the genetic code.)

Robert Burriss

(For numerous original contributions leading to an understanding of the physiology and biochemistry of the process of biological nitrogen fixation.)

Elizabeth C. Crosby

(For outstanding contributions to comparative and human neuroanatomy and for the synthesis and transmission of knowledge of the entire nervous system of the vertebrate phylum.)

Arthur Kornberg

(For accomplishments providing the conceptual and experimental framework for much of our current understanding of the manner in which DNA, the genetic substance, is replicated.)

G. Ledyard Stebbins

(For his outstanding contributions to the synthesis of an evolutionary theory, particularly as it applies to plants.)

Paul Alfred Weiss

(For outstanding contributions to cell biology and understanding of the development of the nervous system including the basis for surgical repair of injury to peripheral nerves.)

Earl Reece Stadtman

(For seminal contributions to understanding of the energy metabolism of anaerobic bacteria and for elucidation of major mechanisms whereby the rates of metabolic processes are finely matched to the requirements of the living cell.)

Roger Guillemin

(For demonstrating the presence of a new class of hormones, made in the brain, that regulate the function of the pituitary gland, thereby making possible improved diagnosis and treatment of numerous endocrine disorders.)

Keith R. Porter

(For fundamental contributions to the elucidation of the fine structure of cells by electron microscopy, which has inaugurated a new era of cell biology integrating structure and function into a comprehensive picture of the life of cells.)

Efraim Racker

(For major contributions to understanding the subcellular mechanism whereby oxidative and photosynthetic energy is transformed into the specific form of chemical energy used by living cells.)

E. O. Wilson

(For his pioneering work on the organization of insect societies and the evolution of social behavior among insects and other animals.)

Hallowell Davis

(For fundamental research on nerve potentials, electroencephalography, and mechanisms of hearing that have formed the basis for advances in neurophysiology, neurology, otolaryngology, audiology, acoustics, occupational health safety, and pediatrics.)

Paul György

(For his discovery of three vitamins and related research that have greatly improved human nutrition.)

Sterling B. Hendricks

(For the initiation of basic research in the physical and chemical properties of soils and proteins that have profoundly influenced agricultural practices and the production of food plants.)

Orville Vogel

(For outstanding contributions to agronomic research including the development of radically new and improved semidwarf varieties of wheat that now grow on five continents and have made the green revolution a reality.)

Britton Chance

(For his contributions to our knowledge of cellular and subcellular physiology made through work on enzyme-substrate complexes, on the kinetics of enzyme action, and on the mechanism and control of membrane-bound elecron transfer during cellular respiration.)

Erwin Chargaff

(For fundamental chemical and biological studies establishing the basis for modern concepts of the mechanisms of protein synthesis and the genetic role of nucleic acids.)

James V. Neel

(For pioneering achievements in creating the science of human genetics and discovering the genetic basis of several human diseases.)

James Augustine Shannon

(For outstanding leadership in biomedical research following an earlier career in distinguished laboratory investigation of kidney function and antimalarial drugs.)

Daniel I. Arnon

(For fundamental research into the mechanism of green plant utilization of light to produce chemical energy and oxygen and for contributions to our understanding of plant nutrition.)

Earl Wilbur Sutherland, Jr.

(For the discovery that epinephrine and hormones of the pituitary gland occasion their diverse regulatory effects by initiating cellular synthesis of cyclic adenylic acid, now recognized as a universal biological second messenger, which opened a new level of understanding of the subtle mechanisms that integrate the chemical life of the cell while offering hope of entirely new approaches to chemotherapy.)

Barbara McClintock

(For establishing the relations between inherited characters in plants and the detailed shapes of their chromosomes, and for showing that some genes are controlled by other genes within chromosomes.)

Albert Sabin

(For numerous fundamental contributions to the understanding of viruses and viral diseases, culminating in the development of the vaccine which has eliminated poliomyelitis as a major threat to human health.)

Robert Huebner

(For contributions to the modern understanding of the biology of viruses and their role in the induction of diverse diseases.)

Ernst Mayr

(For notable contributions to systematics, biogeography, and the study of birds, and especially for great work on the evolution of animal populations.)

Jay Laurence Lush

(For bringing the science of genetics to bear upon animal breeding, and thus helping to remould the flocks and herds of America and Western Europe.)

H. A. Barker

(For his profound study of the chemical activities of microorgqanisms, including the unraveling of fatty acid metabolism and the discovery of the active coenzyme form of vitamin B12.)

Bernard Brodie

(For pioneering new qualitative concepts which have revolutionzed the development, the study, and the effective use of therapeutic agents in the treatment of human disease.)

Detlev Bronk

(For his highly original research in the field of physiology and for his manifold contributions to the advance of science and its institution in the service of society.)

B. F. Skinner

(For basic and imaginative contributions to the study of behavior which have had profound influence upon all of psychology and many related areas.)

Kenneth Stewart Cole

(For highly original experimental and theoretical investigations of the electrical properties of biological membranes that have led to a deep understanding of the functioning of nerves.)

Harry Harlow

(For original and ingenious contributions to comparative and experimental psychology, particularly in the controlled study of learning and motivations, the determinants of animal behavior, and development of affectional behavior.)

Michael Heidelberger

(For placing the science of immunology on a quantitative chemical basis, and for showing its power to reveal the structure of molecules found in the living organism.)

Alfred Sturtevant

(For a long and distinguished career in genetics during which he discovered and interpreted a number of important genetic phenomena in Drosophila and other organisms.)

Edward F. Knipling

(For outstanding original contributions involving unique biological approaches to the control of insect vectors responsible for diseases of humans, domesticated animals, and plants.)

Fritz Albert Lipmann

(For original discoveries of molecular mechanisms for the transfer and transformation of energy in living cells, and for fundamental contributions to the conceptual structure of modern biochemistry.)

William Cumming Rose

(For the discovery of the essential amino acid threonine and for the subsequent brilliant studies elucidating the qualitative and quantitative amino acid requirements of man and of animals.)

Sewall Wright

(For original and sustained contributions to the mathematical foundations of the theory of evolution and for basic contributions to experimental and biometrical genetics.)

Francis Peyton Rous

(For the original discovery and continued elaboration of the relationship between viruses and tumors, which has come to form the biologic base for so much of our present research effort on cancer.)

George Gaylord Simpson

(For penetrating studies of vertebrate evolution through geologic time, and for scholarly synthesis of a new understanding of organic evolution based upon genetics and paleontology.)

Donald Van Slyke

(For classic studies of the chemistry of blood and of amino acid metabolism, and for the quantitative biochemical methodology underlying much of clinical medicine.)

Theodosius Dobzhansky

(For fundamental studies of the genetic determinants of organ evolution and for penetrating analysis of the genetic and cultural evolution of man.)

Marshall Warren Nirenberg

(For studies of the genetic control of protein synthesis and, in particular, for deciphering the chemical code relating nucleic acid structures to protein structures.)

C. B. van Niel

(For his fundamental investigations of the comparative biochemistry of microorganisms, for his studies of the basic mechanisms of photosynthesis, and for his excellence as a teacher of many scientists.)