Ruth Lyttle Satter
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ruth Lyttle Satter | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | March 8, 1923 |
| Died | August 3, 1989 (aged 66) |
| Alma mater | Barnard College University of Connecticut |
| Spouse | Robert Satter |
| Children | Four |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Botany, plant physiology, chronobiology |
| Institutions | Bell Laboratories Maxson Company University of Connecticut Yale University |
Ruth Lyttle Satter (March 8, 1923 – August 3, 1989) was an American botanist best known for her work on circadian leaf movement.
Ruth Lyttle Satter was born March 8, 1923, in New York City as Ruth Lyttle.[1]
Satter received a B.A. in mathematics and physics from Barnard College in 1944.[1] After graduating, she worked at Bell Laboratories and Maxson Company.[2] In 1946 she married Robert Satter and in 1947 she became a homemaker, devoting herself to raising her and Robert's four children, Mimi, Shoshana, Jane and Dick.[1][3][4] While raising her children, her love of plants led her to complete the New York Botanical Garden's horticulturist training in 1951 and to serve as a horticulture instructor for the YMCA Hobby School from 1953 to 1963.[1]
In 1964, she began her graduate studies in plant physiology at the University of Connecticut, where she earned her PhD in botany in 1968.[1] During her doctoral work, Satter began unraveling the molecular underpinnings of the plant circadian clock. She determined the impact of red/far red light and the associated photopigment, phytochrome, on plant morphogenesis.[1] Her work on circadian rhythms would define her career and markedly impact the field of chronobiology.
In 1968, after completion of her PhD, Satter joined the lab of Arthur W. Galston at Yale University to work first as a staff biologist and then as a research associate.[1] At Yale, Satter continued her research on plant chronobiology by studying control of leaf movements.[1] Her work demonstrated that ion flux in leaf motor cells drives this movement, and that the same mechanisms control the movement if the plant is in an environment with a light-dark cycle or an environment with constant light or constant darkness.[5] Additionally, in 1980, she co-authored the third edition of The Life of the Green Plant, a textbook on plant physiology and botany, with Galston and another colleague, Peter J. Davies.[6][7]
In 1980, Satter also became a professor-in-residence at the University of Connecticut, where she discovered that the phosphatidylinositol cycle is the basic light transduction mechanism in the leaf motor cells.[1] The same year Ruth was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia but this diagnosis only heightened her scientific focus.[1] During this time she published multiple papers, worked on a book, and gained international acclaim for her work on chronobiology. She also stayed active with her husband as they traveled the world to bike, swim, and experience different cultures.[4]
Death and legacy
While Satter had remained active throughout most of her illness, her health began to deteriorate in the late 1980s.[4] As her quality of life plummeted, she chose to end treatment and take control of her remaining time.[4] Her peace with this decision and her final days were immortalized by her husband in a New York Times article.[4]
Satter finally lost her protracted battle with leukemia at the age of 66 on August 3, 1989.[1] Satter's will established the Ruth Satter Memorial Award which gives $1000 to women who interrupted their education for at least three years to raise a family.[8] In 1990, the Ruth Lyttle Satter Prize in Mathematics was also established in her memory, with funds donated by her sister, Joan S. Birman.[9] The prize is given every two years and honors Satter's commitment to research and encourages women in science by awarding $5000 to a woman who has made a significant contribution to mathematics research.[9]
.png)
