Lynn Margulis was an American scientist who revolutionized our understanding of how life originated on Earth. Margulis, the oldest of her siblings and born in Chicago, did not graduate first in her class from Hyde Park Academy High School. She received her B.A. and M.A. from the University of Chicago and then studied biology under Walter Plaut and Hans Ris at the University of Wisconsin. During her studies, Brandeis University offered her a post as a research assistant and professor. She reached the pinnacle of her career when she was appointed Distinguished Professor of Geosciences, a post she held until her passing. Margulis was wed twice during her lifetime. She was a fervent evolutionist, but she rejected the theory of current evolutionary synthesis, leading her to conclude that she was more of a “neo-Darwinist.” Her study on mitosing cells was rejected fifteen times before it was finally published and is today regarded as the defining argument of endosymbiotic theory. Margulis was a feisty woman who vigorously supported her thesis, even in the face of intense opposition. In addition to her endosymbiotic theory, Margulis collaborated with the British scientist James Lovelock on the Gaia hypothesis. In addition to her scholarly writings, Margulis has written a number of books that explain scientific concepts to the general public.
Youth and Early Life
Lynn Margulis was born in Chicago on March 5, 1938. She was the oldest of all of Morris and Leona Wise Alexander’s daughters. Her father was an attorney and the owner of a paint manufacturing business. It was known that her mother ran a travel agency.
She was admitted to ‘Hyde Park Academy High School’ in 1952, however, she was never one of the most intelligent students. She was admitted to the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools at age 15.
In 1957, at age 19, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts. Margulis then enrolled at the University of
Wisconsin, where she studied biology under her supervisor Walter Plaut and Hans Ris.
After earning a master’s degree in zoology and genetics in 1960, she began conducting research under Max Alert at the University of California.
Lynn Margulis’s Career
Prior to completing her dissertation in 1964, Brandeis University offered her a research assistantship and a post as a lecturer.
After receiving her Ph.D. from the ‘University of Berkeley’ in 1965, she relocated the next year to ‘Boston University,’ where she taught biology for 22 years.
In 1966, Margulis penned “On the Origin of Mitosing Cells,” a study that was rejected fifteen times prior to its publication in the “Journal of Theoretical Biology.” This study is regarded as a major breakthrough in endosymbiotic theory.
Margulis began as an Adjunct Assistant Professor and was promoted to Assistant Professor in 1967.
Her endosymbiotic idea altered the understanding of how life originated on Earth. This was addressed in depth in the 1970 publication Origin of the Eukaryotic Cell.
She rose from Associate Professor to Distinguished Professor of Botany at ‘The University of Massachusetts’ between 1971 and 1988. During this time, Margulis’ “cell hypothesis” was strongly supported by evidence that the genetic material of chloroplasts and mitochondria differs from the nuclear DNA of symbionts.
In 1974, the distinguished biologist partnered with James Lovelock, who instructed her on the “Gaia hypothesis.” Together, they produced a study proposing that Earth is a complex entity in which living and nonliving objects are completely independent of one another. In fact, their life forms alter the environment to create favorable conditions for their survival.
In 1982, Margulis and Karlene V. Schwartz published Five Kingdoms, classification of life on Earth into five distinct categories.
In 1993, Amherst Massachusetts University’ designated her a Distinguished Professor of Biology.
She moved to the Department of Geosciences in 1997 and held the title of “Distinguished Professor of Geosciences” until her passing.
Margulis desired that all individuals comprehend science. As a compelling lecturer, she visited the Edinburgh Science Festival and inspired students.
She has written a number of books in which she explains scientific subjects in a straightforward manner. The spectrum of issues included global warming and the biological relevance of sex.
Lynn’s Major Effort
Margulis, who self-identified as a “neo-Darwinist,” concentrated on the concept of symbiosis, the living arrangement of two very different creatures in a favorable or unfavorable situation. The endosymbiotic theory of Margulis altered the genesis of cells by proposing that cells with nuclei or eukaryotic cells evolved from the symbiotic fusion of non-nucleated bacteria that lived independently.
Awards & Achievements
Margulis was inducted into the National Academy of Sciences in 1983.
She was one of the three Americans at the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences.
The distinguished scientist was granted the William Procter Prize of Sigma Xi in 1999.
She received the Darwin-Wallace Medal from the Linnean Society of London in 2008.
Personal History and Legacy
In 1957, Margulis married the renowned astronomer Carl Sagan. Sagan was a graduate student in the University of Chicago’s Department of Physics. The marriage had two sons: Dorian Sagan, a renowned science writer, and Jeremy Sagan, the inventor of ‘Sagan Technology’
In 1964, the couple separated, and Margulis married a crystallographer named Thomas N. Margulis. From her second marriage, Margulis produced two children: Zachary Margulis-Ohnuma, a lawyer by profession, and Jennifer, a writer, and educator.
According to the pioneering botanist, it was impossible to mix the duties of a wife and a scientist, and one must give up one in order to focus on the other. Her second marriage ended in 1980.
She had a relationship with fellow scientist Ricardo Guerro in the 2000s.
This evolutionary theorist passed away on November 22, 2011, in Amherst, Massachusetts, after a brain hemorrhage.
Estimated Net Worth
Lynn is one of the wealthiest biologists and one of the most prominent biologists. According to our research, Wikipedia, Forbes, and Business Insider, Lynn Margulis has an estimated net worth of $1.5 million.