Hugh Huxley
Encyclopedia
Hugh Esmor Huxley FRS (born February 25, 1924) is a British biologist. He is professor of biology
at Brandeis University
, in Waltham, Massachusetts
, United States
.
He received his PhD
from Christ's College, Cambridge
. He is most noted for his study of the structure of muscle. In the 1950s he was one of the first to use electron microscopy to establish the sliding filament model for muscle contraction, involving the sliding between actin filaments and myosin filaments in striated skeletal muscle. Subsequently, he has continued to increase our understanding of muscle structure, using electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction methodologies. Much of his research uses frog muscle as a model system. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1960 and awarded the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize
from Columbia University
in 1971. He also won one of its Royal Medal
s in 1977 and its Copley Medal
in 1997. He also received the Franklin Medal
in 1990.
Professor Huxley is a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association
.
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
at Brandeis University
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
, in Waltham, Massachusetts
Waltham, Massachusetts
Waltham is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, was an early center for the labor movement, and major contributor to the American Industrial Revolution. The original home of the Boston Manufacturing Company, the city was a prototype for 19th century industrial city planning,...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
He received his PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
from Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College, Cambridge
Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge.With a reputation for high academic standards, Christ's College averaged top place in the Tompkins Table from 1980-2000 . In 2011, Christ's was placed sixth.-College history:...
. He is most noted for his study of the structure of muscle. In the 1950s he was one of the first to use electron microscopy to establish the sliding filament model for muscle contraction, involving the sliding between actin filaments and myosin filaments in striated skeletal muscle. Subsequently, he has continued to increase our understanding of muscle structure, using electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction methodologies. Much of his research uses frog muscle as a model system. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1960 and awarded the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize
Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize
Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize for Biology or Biochemistry is an annual prize awarded by Columbia University to a researcher or group of researchers that have made an outstanding contribution in basic research in the fields of biology or biochemistry....
from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
in 1971. He also won one of its Royal Medal
Royal Medal
The Royal Medal, also known as The Queen's Medal, is a silver-gilt medal awarded each year by the Royal Society, two for "the most important contributions to the advancement of natural knowledge" and one for "distinguished contributions in the applied sciences" made within the Commonwealth of...
s in 1977 and its Copley Medal
Copley Medal
The Copley Medal is an award given by the Royal Society of London for "outstanding achievements in research in any branch of science, and alternates between the physical sciences and the biological sciences"...
in 1997. He also received the Franklin Medal
Franklin Medal
The Franklin Medal was a science and engineering award presented by the Franklin Institute, of Philadelphia, PA, USA.-Laureates:*1915 - Thomas Alva Edison *1915 - Heike Kamerlingh Onnes *1916 - John J...
in 1990.
Professor Huxley is a Distinguished Supporter of the British Humanist Association
British Humanist Association
The British Humanist Association is an organisation of the United Kingdom which promotes Humanism and represents "people who seek to live good lives without religious or superstitious beliefs." The BHA is committed to secularism, human rights, democracy, egalitarianism and mutual respect...
.
Books
- John Finch; 'A Nobel Fellow On Every Floor', Medical Research Council 2008, 381 pp, ISBN 978-1840469-40-0; this book is all about the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge.