Robert Shapiro is Professor Emeritus and Senior Research Scientist in the
Department of Chemistry at New York University. He is author or co-author of
over 125 publications, primarily in the area of DNA chemistry, and in the
origin of life. In particular, he and his co-workers have studied the ways
in which environmental chemicals can damage our hereditary material, causing
changes that can lead to mutations and cancer. His research has been
supported by numerous grants from the National Institutes of Health,
Department of Energy, National Science Foundation and other organizations.
Further details can be found at the following website: http://chemistry.fas.nyu.edu/object/robertshapiro.html
Professor Shapiro was born on November 28, 1935 in New York City and
obtained a BS in chemistry, summa cum laude (1956) from the City College of
New York He received a PhD degree in organic chemistry from Harvard, under
the supervision of Nobel Laureate R.B. Woodward (1959), postdoctoral
training in DNA chemistry at Cambridge with Nobel Laureate Lord Todd
(1959-1960). After an additional year of postdoctoral study at the NYU
Medical School, he joined the NYU Chemistry Department in 1961. He has held
a Career Development Award from the National Institutes of Health and has
been awarded (with physicist Paul Davies) the Trotter Prize in Complexity,
Information and Inference for 2004. In addition to his research, Professor
Shapiro has written four books and several magazine articles for the general
public. The books include: 1. "Life Beyond Earth", co-author with Gerald
Feinberg, (Morrow 1980). This book advanced a very positive view about the
possibilities for life elsewhere in the Universe. For example, it discussed
the possibility of life in underground niches on Mars, in oceans beneath the
frozen surfaces of the satellites of Jupiter, and in various environments
within Titan, a satellite of Saturn. Today, these sites rank at the top of
NASA's agenda, in searching for life within our Solar System. In addition,
it described a number of exotic possibilities for life based on substances
other than carbon or water. Timothy Ferris, commented in a front-page review
in the New York Times Book Review: "Informative and authoritative yet
venturesome and readable, 'Life Beyond Earth' is one of the best books on
Earth about life elsewhere." The New Yorker observed: "For people who like
to rerad about solid scientific speculation, this is an exhilarating,
informative, and ultimately liberating book." 2. "Origins, a Skeptic's Guide
to the Creation of Life on Earth", (Simon & Schuster, 1986). This work is
described elsewhere in this web site. 3. "The Human Blueprint", (St.
Martin's Press, 1991). This work described the current and future course of
the Human Genome Project. It anticipated the use of DNA testing to resolve
the Thomas Jefferson-Sally Hemings paternity question, and the Anastasia
controversy, as well as the use of DNA analysis to track the historical
movement of human populations. It was an alternate Book-of-the Month Club
Selection for Sept. 1991, and in German translation, this book was selected
by the jury "Bild am Wissenschaft" as the "Wissenschaftbuch des Jahres"
(Science Book of the Year). 4. "Planetary Dreams", (Wiley, 1999). This work
is described elsewhere in this web site. Professor Shapiro has commented:
"obviously, I have developed a taste for very large scientific topics". When
he is not involved in research, lecturing or writing, he enjoys running,
hiking, wine-tastings, raquetball, and travel. He and his wife Sandra, a
clinical psychologist practicing in New York, were married in 1964. Their
son, Michael, born in 1971, composes music for films (http://mikemusic.com).
Robert Shapiro is Professor Emeritus and Senior
Research Scientist in the Department of Chemistry at
New York University. He is author or co-author of
over 125 publications, primarily in the area of DNA
chemistry, and in the origin of life. In particular,
he and his co-workers have studied the ways in which
environmental chemicals can damage our hereditary
material, causing changes that can lead to mutations
and cancer. His research has been supported by
numerous grants from the National Institutes of
Health, Department of Energy, National Science
Foundation and other organizations. Further details
can be found at the following website:
Professor Shapiro was born on November 28, 1935 in
New York City and obtained a BS in chemistry, summa
cum laude (1956) from the City College of New York
He received a PhD degree in organic chemistry from
Harvard, under the supervision of Nobel Laureate R.B.
Woodward (1959), postdoctoral training in DNA
chemistry at Cambridge with Nobel Laureate Lord Todd
(1959-1960). After an additional year of
postdoctoral study at the NYU Medical School, he
joined the NYU Chemistry Department in 1961. He has
held a Career Development Award from the National
Institutes of Health and has been awarded (with
physicist Paul Davies) the Trotter Prize in
Complexity, Information and Inference for 2004.
In addition to his research, Professor Shapiro has
written four books and several magazine articles for
the general public. The books include:
1.“Life Beyond Earth”, co-author
with Gerald Feinberg, (Morrow 1980). This book
advanced a very positive view about the
possibilities for life elsewhere in the
Universe. For example, it discussed the
possibility of life in underground niches on
Mars, in oceans beneath the frozen surfaces of
the satellites of Jupiter, and in various
environments within Titan, a satellite of
Saturn. Today, these sites rank at the top of
NASA’s agenda, in searching for life within our
Solar System. In addition, it described a number
of exotic possibilities for life based on
substances other than carbon or water.
Timothy Ferris, commented in a front-page review
in the New York Times Book Review: “Informative
and authoritative yet venturesome and readable,
‘Life Beyond Earth’ is one of the best
books on Earth about life elsewhere.” The New
Yorker observed: “For people who like to rerad
about solid scientific speculation, this is an
exhilarating, informative, and ultimately
liberating book.”
2.“Origins, a Skeptic’s Guide to the
Creation of Life on Earth”, (Simon &
Schuster, 1986). This work is described
elsewhere in this web site.
3.“The Human Blueprint”, (St.
Martin’s Press, 1991). This work described the
current and future course of the Human Genome
Project. It anticipated the use of DNA testing
to resolve the Thomas Jefferson-Sally Hemings
paternity question, and the Anastasia
controversy, as well as the use of DNA analysis
to track the historical movement of human
populations. It was an alternate Book-of-the
Month Club Selection for Sept. 1991, and in
German translation, this book was selected by
the jury “Bild am Wissenschaft” as the
“Wissenschaftbuch des Jahres” (Science Book of
the Year).
4.“Planetary Dreams”, (Wiley,
1999). This work is described elsewhere in this
web site.
Professor Shapiro has commented: “obviously, I have
developed a taste for very large scientific topics”.
When he is not involved in research, lecturing or
writing, he enjoys running, hiking, wine-tastings,
raquetball, and travel. He and his wife Sandra, a
clinical psychologist practicing in New York, were
married in 1964. Their son, Michael, born in 1971,
composes music for films (http://mikemusic.com).
Planetary Dreams
“The stunning insights provided in Planetary
Dreams make it a book for everyone who has
the slightest curiosity about our role in
the cosmos.”
Origins, a Skeptic’s Guide to the Creation
of Life on Earth
Reviews:
“Professor Shapiro, of New York University, is a
chemist, and to judge from this splendid book, a natural
writer. He shifts through the various hypotheses about
the origin of life and demonstrates that most are
scientifically implausible or are simply forms of
creation myth, sometimes in the guise of science.”
-The New Yorker
“Here is a first-rate scientific mind enlivened by wit
and wisdom throwing a brilliant light upon the
perennially interesting question of the origin of life;
and performing this seemingly difficult task in a most
delightfully readable manner. ORIGINS is certainly the
most original and right-headed book ever written on the
subject, at once illuminating, highly informative, and
vastly entertaining, and while likely to cause some bats
in academic belfries to blush, the reader will find it
an exhilarating experience.”
-Dr. Ashley Montague
“Superbly written…To walk through its arguments is to
come upon the process of science, the veil of
self-deception, and the questing nature of speculation.”
-Science ‘86
Excerpt:
“’There are those who believe that life here began out
there.’ A phrase of this type was repeated at the start
of each episode of a recent space-opera series. As it
was spoken, the screen showed a fleet of spacecraft
headed for the planet Earth, in a massive galactic
Exodus. The scope of these events, and the backdrop of
star-studded space, sent a clear message. Our presence
on this planet was not merely the result of some local
accident but rather had cosmic importance, affecting the
entire galaxy.
The heavens on a bright night are a magnificent sight. I
find it impossible to look up at them and not be
overwhelmed by their majesty. I was spared this
experience for much of my childhood, as I grew up under
the hazy, glare-filled skies of New York City. Only
occasionally, when my family was on vacation in the
Catskills and I was allowed to stay up unusually late on
a summer evening, could I enjoy the full experience.
More often, I saw it in simulation, under the artificial
sky of the Hayden Planetarium. Whatever the
circumstances, once I had seen the effect, I could
understand the emotions of those who wished to move our
origins out into the cosmos. They were similar to those
of a chambermaid in a fairy tale, who secretly hoped
that she had been born a princess and that someday her
true identity would be revealed.”
Planetary Dreams
“The stunning insights provided in Planetary
Dreams make it a book for everyone who has the
slightest curiosity about our role in the
cosmos.”
