Joram piatigorsky biography books

After publishing a scientific book on vision and genetics, Gene Sharing and Evolution, (Harvard University Press, ) I decided to turn my hand to fiction.

Joram Piatigorsky is an American molecular biologist and eye researcher.

Since then, I published a memoir, The Speed of Dark, about my childhood, science, and other interests, two collections of short stories, a.

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Joram Piatigorsky

BOOK REVIEW

NOTES GOING UNDERGROUND

BY Joram Piatigorsky

This intriguingly dark collection of short stories by Piatigorsky (Jellyfish Have Eyes, , etc.) considers the possibility of a transitional stage between life and death.

“I cannot fathom my own death,” writes scientist Piatigorsky, “however, the mind and imagination can…indulge in fantasies…that challenge our concepts of death and being human.” This collection of six short stories does exactly that. The first, “Notes Going Underground,” is written from the perspective of a research scientist who finds he has been given a “grace period” between life and death to “size up” his life before burial. In “My Funeral,” a biomedical forskare discovers that once dead, he continues to feel alive and attends his own memorial service. “Waking up Dead” continues in a similar vein with a protagonist who doesn’t realize he is dead and continues his life as usual. The imagination-stretching “Death

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As a scientist, writer and collector, Joram continues to explore the world around him.

Scientists develop hypotheses – possibilities – to bridge gaps in the narrative between the known and the unknown. We look at the specimens and data we collect and try to tease out meaning, examining what we have, questioning what we might be missing, and trying to reconcile the two. We do this in hopes that others will build on the work we have done, thereby modifying and advancing our views and conclusions. In a nutshell, this describes my life as a basic scientist.

I spent close to 50 years in science as a molecular biologist and eye researcher, first at Caltech as a graduate lärling from to , and then at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). In , inom founded the Laboratory of Molecular and Developmental Biology at the National Eye Institute and served as its chief until , when I closed my laboratory and became a Scientist Emeritus, an NIH position I hold presently.

Late in my science car

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The Speed of Dark: A memoir

June 26,

Joram's story begins when his parents, the world-renowned cellist Gregor Piatigorsky, and the baroness Jacqueline de Rothschild, board the Isle de France on Sept. 1, in Le Havre, France – destined for America. They missed the German invasion by a week. Joram was born five months later in upstate New York, becoming the first American citizen in his European family. By choosing to become a scientist, Joram broke the chain of his European lineage of art, music and banking, and it's a good thing he did, because he became a renowned eye researcher and molecular biologist for the National Institutes of Health, and his research led to major discoveries in gene expression.

"The Speed of Dark" is a contemplative, easy read about family, art, and some cool science. We learn of the findings that led to the publication of Joram's book, "Gene Sharing and Expression" and his first novel, "Jellyfish Have Eyes." We travel with Joram back to the swamps of Puert