Easter Ellen Cupp (March 30, 1904 – August 27, 1999) was the first woman to get a Ph.D. in oceanography from

Scripps Institution of Oceanography Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) is the center for oceanography and Earth science at the University of California, San Diego. Its main campus is located in La Jolla, with additional facilities in Point Loma. Founded in 1903 and incorpo ...

. She is known for her work on diatoms.

Early life

Cupp was born on March 30, 1904, which was the day Easter holiday is celebrated, in Neola, Iowa.

Education

In 1910 she moved to Whittier, California where she would later attend college. Cupp received an undergraduate degree from

Whittier College Whittier College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Whittier, California. It is a Hispanic-serving institution, Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and, as of spring 2024, had 815 ...

(1926), and in 1927 she moved to Berkeley where she received a master's degree from the

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university, research university system in the U.S. state of California. Headquartered in Oakland, California, Oakland, the system is co ...

(1928). From 1929 until 1934 she worked as a research assistant at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. In 1934 she earned her Ph.D. from Scripps Institution of Oceanography with her research on

diatom A diatom (Neo-Latin ''diatoma'') is any member of a large group comprising several Genus, genera of algae, specifically microalgae, found in the oceans, waterways and soils of the world. Living diatoms make up a significant portion of Earth's B ...

s. Oceanography was a new degree at the time, and Cupp was one of only five people with a Ph.D. in oceanography at the time.

Career

Cupp both conducted research at Scripps and taught classes in phytoplankton ecology with W.E. Allen who had been her graduate advisor. The director of Scripps, Harald Sverdrup, had positive reviews of Cupp's work, but in 1939 he fired Cupp because he decided her research did not match the research goals of the institution. Sverdrup replaced Cupp with Marston Sargent who had arrived at Scripps a year earlier. In later year's Cupp's status as the first woman to earn a Ph.D. from Scripps was forgotten by some, and

Naomi Oreskes Naomi Oreskes (; born November 25, 1958) is an American historian of science. She became Professor of the History of Science and Affiliated Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Harvard University in 2013, after 15 years as Professor of H ...

speculated in 2000 that some were uncomfortable with the firing of Cupp.

Later life

After Scripps, Cupp worked with the Navy from 1940 until 1943, and then became a teacher at Woodrow Wilson Middle School in City Heights, California. She retired from teaching in 1967. Cupp died in 1999.

Research

Cupp is known for her research on diatoms, and she published a guide to diatoms found in the western United States, and other locations. She published works on different diatoms species she encountered in her investigations. Cupp was also known for her illustrations and collaborated with others on works requiring illustrations.

Selected publications

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References

External links

Cupp's archived papers in California

Photograph of Cupp and other scientists at Scripps in 1936
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cupp, Easter Ellen 1904 births 1999 deaths Whittier College alumni University of California alumni American women biologists Scripps Institution of Oceanography alumni American oceanographers American women oceanographers 20th-century American biologists 20th-century American educators 20th-century American women educators