Professor (b. 1923)
Professor (b. 1923)
A.B., 1942, Kenyon College; Ph.D., 1945, University of Wisconsin
ACS Award in Pure Chemistry, 1958; ACS Baekeland Medal, 1959; ACS Fritzsche Award, 1960; National Academy of Sciences, 1961; ACS Award for Creative Invention, 1973; National Medal of Science, 1973; Perkin Medal, 1975; Wolf Prize in Chemistry, 1978; ACS Award in Chemistry of Contemporary Technological Problems, 1983; John & Samuel Bard Award in Medicine & Science, 1983; Roussel Prize, 1988; Esselen Award for Chemistry in the Public Interest, 1989; National Academy of Sciences Award for the Industrial Application of Science, 1990; National Medal of Technology, 1991; Priestley Medal, 1992; Nevada Medal, 1992; Thompson Gold Medal (Internat. Mass Spectrometry Soc.) 1995; Prince Mahidol Award in Medicine (Thailand), 1995; Sovereign Fund Award, 1996; Gibbs Medal (ACS Chicago Section), 1997; William Procter Prize for Scientific Achievement of Sigma Xi (1998); Austrian Cross of Honor for Art and Science, First Class (1999); and 19 honorary doctorates.
650-723-2783
djerassi@stanford.edu
Until the early 1990s, research in my laboratory dealt with the biosynthesis of marine natural products, specifically unusual sterols and phospholipids, and with an elucidation of the biological role of these unique sterols and lipids (mostly unprecedented in terrestrial organisms) in cell membrane function.
Currently, instead of laboratory research, the intellectual emphasis is placed on two subjects: The first deals with policy research in the area of human fertility control and extends way beyond my initial involvement in developing new contraceptive "hardware" (e.g. steroid oral contraceptives) to the complex issues and socio-cultural elements of human fertility control --which currently also represent the focus of my teaching in the Stanford Human Biology Program and of lectures to a broader, outside public. I have also chosen the most recent advances in male reproductive biology dealing with male infertility and erectile dysfunction as the subjects of my "science-in-fiction" novels Menachem's Seed and NO respectively, while my science-in-theatre play, "An Immaculate Misconception," performed in London, San Francisco, and Vienna in 1999 and New York in 2001, examines the societal implications of the latest assisted reproduction techniques. This play and Oxygen (written with Roald Hoffmann) have been broadcast by the BBC on the World Service as "Play of the Week" (in 2000 and 2001 respectively).
My second major interest is to examine the culture and behavior of scientists through an infrequently used vehicle: novels written in the genre "science-in-fiction" (as distinct from "science fiction") and plays in the genre of "science-in-theatre." In this manner, I address a variety of currently relevant issues such as the mentor-disciple relationship, the intrinsic collegiality and concurrent competition of the research enterprise, the need for trust coupled with its occasional violation, the role of women in male dominated scientific disciplines, Nobel lust, and many other topics. By illustrating these in the guise of fiction or dramatic plays, they become accessible to a much wider lay public which is completely unfamiliar with the tribal culture of scientists. At the same time, such an approach offers a new teaching tool to expose beginning research scientists, notably graduate students, to the subtleties of the scientific culture which is so rarely taught in formal courses in the physical sciences. For further details, see http://www.djerassi.com where the use of this genre in my course Ethical Discourse through Science-in-fiction is illustrated.
1 Oxygen (play, written with Roald Hoffmann), Wiley-VCH, Weinheim, Germany, aand New York, 2001.
2 This Man's Pill: Reflections on the 50th Birthday of the Pill, Oxford University Press, Oxford and New York, 2001.
3 NO (novel), university of Georgia Press, Athens, GA, 1998; Penguin (paperback), New York, 2000.
4 An Immaculate Misconception: Sex in an Age of Mechanical Reproduction (play), Imperial College Press, London, 2000.
5 "Sex in an Age of Mechanical Reproduction," C. Djerassi, Science, 285, 53 (1999).
6 Cantor's Dilemna (novel), Penguin (paperback), New York, reprinted 1999.
7 "Ethical Discourse by science-in-fiction," C. Djerassi, Nature, 393, 511 (1998).
8 Menachem's Seed (novel), University of Georgia Press, Athens, GA, 1997; Penguin (paperback) New York, 1998.
9 The Bourbaki Gambit (novel), University of Georgia Press, Athens, GA, 1994; Penguin (paperback) New York, 1996.