George Oster
George Frederick Oster NAS (April 20, 1940 – April 15, 2018)[1] was an American mathematical biologist, and Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology at University of California, Berkeley.[2][3][4] He made seminal contributions to several varied fields including chaos theory, population dynamics, membrane dynamics and molecular motors.[5] He was a 1985 MacArthur Fellow.
George F. Oster | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 20, 1940 New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Died | April 15, 2018 (aged 77) |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Columbia University University of California, Berkeley |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Biology |
| Institutions | University of California, Berkeley |
| Thesis | High temperature saturated liquid and vapor densities and the critical point of cesium (1967) |
| Doctoral advisor | Charles F. Bonilla |
Early career
He graduated from Columbia University, with a Ph.D., in Nuclear Engineering in 1967.[6] He was appointed as an assistant professor in at UC Berkeley in 1970.[6] In the early 1970s Oster collaborated with Aharon Katzir-Katchalsky on statistical mechanics.[6]
Oster's work with E. O. Wilson on populations dynamics of social animals, particularly ants, is considered pioneering work in evolution in social insects.[6] Oster was one of the first theoretical biologists to understand that a complex interplay between mechanical and chemical forces was at the root of most biological phenomena.[6]
Later career
He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2004.[7] Oster was a Guggenheim Fellow, and a member of the science board of the Santa Fe Institute.[6]
Awards
- 1975 Guggenheim Fellowship
- 1984 MacArthur Fellows Program
- 1992 Weldon Memorial Prize
- Winfree Prize for Mathematical Biology
- Sackler International Prize in Biophysics
References
- George F. Oster
- "Faculty Research Page". berkeley.edu.
- "Oster Lab - At the University of California, Berkeley". berkeley.edu.
- "CiBER | Center for Interdisciplinary Bio-inspiration in Education and Research".
- "In memoriam: George Oster | Santa Fe Institute". santafe.edu. Retrieved 2018-11-03.
- "George Oster, pioneer in applying mathematics to biology, dies at 77". Berkeley News. 2018-04-20. Retrieved 2018-11-03.
- Nuzzo, R. (2006). "Profile of George Oster". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 103 (6): 1672–1674. Bibcode:2006PNAS..103.1672N. doi:10.1073/pnas.0509056103. PMC 1413643. PMID 16446440.