Browse "Biologists"

Alexander Thomas Cameron, biochemist (b at London, Eng 1882; d at Winnipeg 25 Sept 1947). Educated in chemistry at University of Edinburgh, Cameron came to University of Manitoba as lecturer of physiology and remained there (except for WWI service in France) until his death.

Alf Erling Porsild, botanist, northern explorer (b at Copenhagen, Denmark 17 Jan 1901; d at Vienna, Austria 13 Nov 1977).

André Joseph Cipriani, biophysicist, avid sportsman, bon vivant (b at Port-of-Spain, Trinidad 2 Apr 1908; d at Deep River, Ont 23 Feb 1956).

André Michaux, botanist, explorer (b near Versailles, France 8 Mar 1746; d on Madagascar 11 Oct 1803?). He compiled the first North American flora which includes many plants collected in Lower Canada in 1792.

Anne Elizabeth Haviland, née Grubbe, botanist and collector (born 28 September 1818 in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England; died 10 November 1902 in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island).

Archibald Byron Macallum, biochemist, physiologist, educator (b at Belmont, Canada W 7 Apr 1858; d at London, Ont 5 Apr 1934).

Archibald Gowanlock Huntsman, marine biologist, administrator, editor, teacher (b at Tintern, Ont 23 Nov 1883; d at St Andrews, NB 8 Aug 1973). Huntsman was a provocative thinker and innovator who decisively influenced fisheries science in Canada.

Armand Frappier, CC, physician, microbiologist (born 26 November 1904 in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, QC; died 17 December 1991 in Montréal, QC). Armand Frappier was a key figure in the fight against tuberculosis in Canada; he both produced the BCG (bacillus Calmette-Guérin) vaccine and advocated widespread vaccinations across the country. As founder and director of the Institut de microbiologie et d'hygiène de Montréal, he advanced medical research into infectious diseases and played an important role in the development of public health. (See also INRS-Armand-Frappier Santé Biotechnologie Research Centre.) He and his team produced a number of vaccines and other biological products (e.g., the anti-polio Salk vaccine, penicillin) and were responsible for freeze-drying blood serum for the armed forces during the Second World War. (See also Canada and the Development of the Polio Vaccine).

Aser Rothstein, physiologist (born 29 April 1918 in Vancouver, BC; died 4 July 2015 in Guelph, ON). He contributed enormously to the fields of cellular physiology and toxicology.

Bernhard Adolf Hantzsch, explorer, ornithologist (d near the mouth of Hantzsch R, NWT June 1911). Hantzsch sailed with a German ornithological expedition to the eastern Arctic in 1906 and during that summer explored and collected specimens along the coast of Ungava Bay and northern Labrador.

Biruté Marija Filomena Galdikas, OC, primatologist, conservationist, educator (born 10 May 1946 in Wiesbaden, Germany). Galdikas is the world’s leading authority on orangutans. She has studied them in Indonesian Borneo since 1971. She is also involved in conservation and rehabilitation efforts for orangutans. Galdikas forms part of a trio of primatologists nicknamed the “Trimates,” along with Jane Goodall and Dian Fossey. Galdikas spends part of the year in Indonesia and teaches half time at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver.

Boucar Diouf, CQ, scientist, teacher, writer, poet, storyteller, comedian and columnist (born 26 May 1965 in Fatick, Senegal). Diouf is beloved for his inspired, sincere and relatable outlook. In his books and monologues, Diouf explores the themes of immigration and integration into Quebec society. As an educator, Diouf manages to defuse controversial subjects by using humour and shining a philosophical light on them.

Brenda Atkinson Milner (née Langford), CC, GOQ, FRSC, FRS, neuropsychologist (born 15 July 1918 in Manchester, England). Dr. Milner pioneered the field of neuropsychology, combining neurology and psychology. Most notably, she discovered that the part of the brain called the medial temporal lobe (which includes the hippocampus) is critical for the forming of long-term memories. Milner’s later work revealed that the learning of skills involving the combination of vision and movement is not part of the medial temporal lobe system. These discoveries proved that there are different forms of memory in different brain regions. Through her observation of patients, Milner changed forever our understanding of the brain’s learning and memory mechanisms. Click here for definitions of key terms used in this article.

Charles Herbert Best, physiologist, co-discoverer of insulin (born 27 Feb 1899 in West Pembroke, Maine; died 31 Marh 1978 in Toronto, ON). Best is perhaps best known for his role in the discovery of insulin, a treatment for diabetes mellitus. He was posthumously inducted into Canada’s Walk of Fame in 2021.

Charles James Stewart Bethune, clergyman, entomologist, educator (b in W Flamborough Twp, Upper Canada 11 Aug 1838; d at Toronto 18 Apr 1932). He was a graduate of Toronto's Upper Canada College and University of Toronto's Trinity College (BA 1859) and was ordained an Anglican priest in 1862.