Paul D. Boyer

More by example than by word, my father taught me logical reasoning, compassion, love of others, honesty, and discipline applied with understanding.

Family trips to Yellowstone and to what are now national parks in Southern Utah, driving the primitive roads and cars of that day, were real adventures.

Her death contributed to my later interest in studying biochemistry, an interest that has not been fulfilled in the sense that my accomplishments remain more at the basic than the applied level.

An unexpected benefit of my career in biochemistry has been travel.

This led to the discovery that long chain fatty acids would remarkably stabilize serum albumin to heat denaturation, and would even reverse the denaturation by heat or concentrated urea solutions.

I participated on debating teams and in student government, and served as senior class president.

I am told that I had a bad temper, and remember being banished to the back hall until civility returned.

The experience reminds me of a favorite saying: Most of the yield from research efforts comes from the coal that is mined while looking for diamonds.

It wasn't until late high school and early college that I gained enough size and skill to make me welcome on intramural basketball teams.

Mountain hikes instilled in me a life-long urge to get to the top of any inviting summit or peak.

If our society continues to support basic research on how living organisms function, it is likely that my great grandchildren will be spared the agony of losing family members to most types of cancer.

The excitement of vitamins, nutrition and metabolism permeated the environment.