Lewis Thomas (November 25, 1913 – December 3, 1993) was an American physician, poet, etymologist, essayist, administrator, educator, policy advisor, and researcher.

Life and career

Thomas was born in

Flushing, New York Flushing is a neighborhood in the north-central portion of the New York City borough of Queens. The neighborhood is the fourth-largest central business district in New York City. Downtown Flushing is a major commercial and retail area, and the ...

and attended

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

and

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...

. He became Dean of

Yale Medical School The Yale School of Medicine is the medical school of Yale University, a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was founded in 1810 as the Medical Institution of Yale College and formally opened in 1813. It is the sixth-oldest m ...

and

New York University School of Medicine The New York University Grossman School of Medicine is a medical school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1841 and is one of two medical schools of the university, the other being the NYU G ...

, and President of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Institute. His formative years as an independent medical researcher were at

Tulane University School of Medicine Tulane University School of Medicine is the medical school of Tulane University and is located in the Medical District of the New Orleans Central Business District in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. History The school was founded in 183 ...

. He was invited to write regular essays in the ''

New England Journal of Medicine ''The New England Journal of Medicine'' (''NEJM'') is a weekly medical journal published by the Massachusetts Medical Society. Founded in 1812, the journal is among the most prestigious peer-reviewed medical journals. Its 2023 impact factor was ...

''. One collection of those essays, '' The Lives of a Cell: Notes of a Biology Watcher'' (1974), won annual

National Book Awards The National Book Awards (NBA) are a set of annual U.S. literary awards. At the final National Book Awards Ceremony every November, the National Book Foundation presents the National Book Awards and two lifetime achievement awards to authors. ...

in two categories, Arts and Letters and The Sciences (both awards were split)."National Book Awards – 1975"
.

National Book Foundation The National Book Foundation (NBF) is an American nonprofit organization established with the goal "to raise the cultural appreciation of great writing in America." Established in 1989 by National Book Awards, Inc.,Edwin McDowell. "Book Notes: ...

. Retrieved 2012-03-05.
(With acceptance speech by Thomas.) (He also won a

Christopher Award The Christopher Award (established 1949) is presented to the producers, directors, and writers of books, films and television specials that "affirm the highest values of the human spirit". It is given by The Christophers, a Christian organizatio ...

for that book.) Two other collections of essays (originally published in ''NEJM'' and elsewhere) were '' The Medusa and the Snail'' and ''Late Night Thoughts on Listening to Mahler's Ninth Symphony''. In its first paperback edition, ''The Medusa and the Snail'' won another National Book Award in Science."National Book Awards – 1981"
National Book Foundation. Retrieved 2012-03-05.This was the 1981 award for paperback Science.
From 1980 to 1983 in National Book Awards history there were dual hardcover and paperback awards in most categories, and multiple nonfiction subcategories. Most of the paperback award-winners were reprints, including this one. His autobiography, ''The Youngest Science: Notes of a Medicine Watcher'', is a record of a century of

medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

and the changes which occurred in it. He also published a book on

etymology Etymology ( ) is the study of the origin and evolution of words—including their constituent units of sound and meaning—across time. In the 21st century a subfield within linguistics, etymology has become a more rigorously scientific study. ...

titled ''Et Cetera, Et Cetera'', poems, and numerous scientific papers. Many of his essays discuss relationships among ideas or concepts using etymology as a starting point. Others concern the cultural implications of scientific discoveries and the growing awareness of

ecology Ecology () is the natural science of the relationships among living organisms and their Natural environment, environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community (ecology), community, ecosystem, and biosphere lev ...

. In his essay on Mahler's ''Ninth Symphony'', Thomas addresses the anxieties produced by the development of nuclear weapons. Thomas is often quoted, given his notably eclectic interests and superlative prose style. Thomas was a member of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

(1961), the United States

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...

(1972), and the

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

(1976). The Lewis Thomas Prize is awarded annually by The

Rockefeller University The Rockefeller University is a Private university, private Medical research, biomedical Research university, research and graduate-only university in New York City, New York. It focuses primarily on the biological and medical sciences and pro ...

to a scientist for artistic achievement. He died in 1993 of Waldenstrom's disease, a rare lymphoma-like cancer. His daughter is writer Abigail Thomas.

Books

*'' The Lives of a Cell: Notes of a Biology Watcher'', 1974, Viking Press: , Penguin Books, 1995 reprint: *''A Long Line of Cells. Collected Essays'', 1990, Viking Penguin. *'' The Medusa and the Snail: More Notes of a Biology Watcher'', 1979, Viking Press: , Penguin Books, 1995 reprint: *''Late Night Thoughts on Listening to Mahler's Ninth Symphony'', 1983, Viking Press: , Penguin Books, 1995 reprint: *''The Youngest Science: Notes of a Medicine-Watcher'', 1983, Viking: , Penguin Books, 1995 reprint: *''Et Cetera, Et Cetera: Notes of a Word-Watcher'', 1990. Little Brown & Co , Welcome Rain, 2000 *''The Fragile Species'', 1992, Scribner, , Simon & Schuster, 1996 paperback:

Notes

References

External links

* Succinct review of Thomas' life and of the books listed above.
Gerald Weissmann, "Lewis Thomas", Biographical Memoirs of the National Academy of Sciences (2004)
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Lewis 1913 births 1993 deaths Etymologists American people of Welsh descent American science writers American medical writers National Book Award winners Physicians from New York City Princeton University alumni Harvard Medical School alumni Yale University faculty New York University faculty 20th-century American poets 20th-century American essayists Members of the National Academy of Medicine Members of the American Philosophical Society Members of the American Academy of Arts and Letters Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center faculty