Joan Lyn Slonczewski (born August 14, 1956) is an American

microbiologist A microbiologist (from Greek ) is a scientist who studies microscopic life forms and processes. This includes study of the growth, interactions and characteristics of microscopic organisms such as bacteria, algae, fungi, and some types of par ...

Kenyon College Kenyon College ( ) is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1824 by Episcopal Bishop Philander Chase. It is the oldest private instituti ...

and a

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

writer who explores biology and space travel. Her books have twice earned the

John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel The John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel, or Campbell Memorial Award, was an annual award presented to the author of the best science fiction novel published in English in the preceding calendar year. It was given by s ...

: '' A Door into Ocean'' (1987) and ''The Highest Frontier'' (2011). With John W. Foster and Erik Zinser, she coauthors the textbook, ''Microbiology: An Evolving Science'' (W. W. Norton) now in its fifth edition.

Biography

Slonczewski was born in August 14, 1956 at

Hyde Park, New York Hyde Park is a town in Dutchess County, New York, United States, bordering the Hudson River north of Poughkeepsie. Within the town are the hamlets of Hyde Park, East Park, Staatsburg, and Haviland. Hyde Park is known as the hometown of Fra ...

and raised in Katonah, New York. She earned an A.B. in biology,

magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

, from

Bryn Mawr College Bryn Mawr College ( ; Welsh language, Welsh: ) is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as a ...

in 1977. Slonczewski completed a PhD in Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry from

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

in 1982 and post-doctoral work at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

studying calcium flux in leukocyte chemotaxis. Since 1984 she has taught at

, taking sabbatical leaves at

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 the

University of Maryland, Baltimore The University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) is a public university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1807, it is the second oldest college in Maryland and comprises some of the oldest professional schools of dentistry, law, me ...

. Slonczewski's research focuses on the pH (environmental) stress response in ''

Escherichia coli ''Escherichia coli'' ( )Wells, J. C. (2000) Longman Pronunciation Dictionary. Harlow ngland Pearson Education Ltd. is a gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, rod-shaped, coliform bacterium of the genus '' Escherichia'' that is commonly fo ...

'' and ''

Bacillus subtilis ''Bacillus subtilis'' (), known also as the hay bacillus or grass bacillus, is a gram-positive, catalase-positive bacterium, found in soil and the gastrointestinal tract of ruminants, humans and marine sponges. As a member of the genus ''Bacill ...

'' using genetic techniques. Slonczewski teaches both

biology Biology is the scientific study of life and living organisms. It is a broad natural science that encompasses a wide range of fields and unifying principles that explain the structure, function, growth, History of life, origin, evolution, and ...

and science fiction courses. From 1996 through 2008, she has been awarded

Howard Hughes Medical Institute The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) is an American non-profit medical research organization headquartered in Chevy Chase, Maryland with additional facilities in Ashburn, Virginia. It was founded in 1953 by Howard Hughes, an American busin ...

funding for undergraduate biological sciences education, which she has used to improve science instruction and to foster summer science fellowships for minority and first-generation students. Dr. Slonczewski was the Hal Clement Science Speaker in February 2011 at the Boskone 48 convention. Slonczewski is also a member of the

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to the Religious Society of Friends, a historically Protestantism, Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations. Members refer to each other as Friends after in the Bible, and originally ...

and Quakerism is featured in many of her novels.

Fiction

Slonczewski's 1986 Campbell Award-winning novel '' A Door into Ocean'' shows her command of genetics and ecological science, as well as commitment to

pacifism Pacifism is the opposition to war or violence. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campaigner Émile Arnaud and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress in Glasgow in 1901. A related term is ...

and

feminism Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideology, ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social gender equality, equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that modern soci ...

. It depicts the

ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) is a system formed by Organism, organisms in interaction with their Biophysical environment, environment. The Biotic material, biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and en ...

of a planet covered entirely by water, inhabited by an exclusively female race of genetic engineers. ''Daughters of Elysium'' (1993), '' The Children Star'' (1998), and ''Brain Plague'' (2000) are loose sequels. A serialization of Slonczewski's ''The Children Star'' (1998) appeared in ''

Analog Science Fiction and Fact ''Analog Science Fiction and Fact'' is an American science fiction magazine published under various titles since 1930. Originally titled ''Astounding Stories of Super-Science'', the first issue was dated January 1930, published by William Cla ...

'', a magazine known for hard science fiction. ''Brain Plague'' (2000) depicts a world where intelligent

microbe A microorganism, or microbe, is an organism of microscopic size, which may exist in its single-celled form or as a colony of cells. The possible existence of unseen microbial life was suspected from antiquity, with an early attestation in ...

s inhabit human brains. The microbial aliens have potential for great good as well as great evil. They evolve in the same way as pathogens such as

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the im ...

or as

symbiont Symbiosis (Ancient Greek : living with, companionship < : together; and ''bíōsis'': living) is any type of a close and long-term biological interaction, between two organisms of different species. The two organisms, termed symbionts, can fo ...

s such as our digestive bacteria, which help keep humans healthy. ''Brain Plague'' tells of a future in which genetic engineering, combined with

nanotechnology Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter with at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometers (nm). At this scale, commonly known as the nanoscale, surface area and quantum mechanical effects become important in describing propertie ...

, can do everything from shaping our bodies to growing enormous buildings for us. In an interview on their writing, Slonczewski related: "One time in class, my students were discussing my book ''Brain Plague''. I asked the class, 'Is this book liberal or conservative?' A student said, 'It's conservative, because all the characters are married.' Another student jumped up, 'It is not conservative!' Half the book's marriages are gay – with a few robots included."Joan Slonczewski: Field of Discovery
Interview at ''Locus'', March 2014 ''The Highest Frontier'' (2011) is a coming of age story about the first year in college of Jennifer Ramos Kennedy, a member of the ongoing Kennedy political dynasty. The year is 2108 and Jenny is attending Frontera College, which is located in a space habitation. The earth is being destroyed by human-made ecological catastrophes blamed on the "ultraphytes," UV-photosynthetic plant-animals from outer space. Some political factions are promoting space habitats as a solution, but the spacehabs can only accommodate a tiny percentage of the human population. The political system is grid locked. ''The Highest Frontier'' addresses political, social, and environmental issues.

Awards

* Robert Tomsich Award, for outstanding achievement in research in science,

, 2001. * Silver Medalist, National Professor of the Year program, Council for the Advancement and Support of Education, Washington DC, 1989. *

, ''A Door into Ocean'', 1987. * John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel, ''The Highest Frontier'', 2012.

Bibliography

Novels

* * * * * * *

Science publications

* J. L. Slonczewski, John W. Foster and Erik Zinser, 2020, ''Microbiology: An Evolving Science'' 5E, a core microbiology textbook for undergraduate science majors, W. W. Norton & Co., New York.

References

External links

Joan Slonczewski siteUltraphyte
author blog
Joan Slonczewski paper on BacteriologyJoan Slonczewski selected as Keynote Speaker for Science and Science Fiction Conference
*
Making Strange Stuff Familiar: A Conversation with Joan Slonczewski
(interview) at Clarkesworld Magazine, 10/2011
Joan Slonczewski: Field of Discovery
Interview at

Locus magazine ''Locus: The Magazine of The Science Fiction & Fantasy Field'', founded in 1968, is an American magazine published monthly in Oakland, California. It is the news organ and trade journal for the English-language science fiction and fantasy fields. ...

, March 2014 {{DEFAULTSORT:Slonczewski, Joan 1956 births 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American science fiction writers American women novelists American women science fiction and fantasy writers American pacifists American Quakers American feminist writers Bryn Mawr College alumni Kenyon College faculty Living people American microbiologists University of Pennsylvania alumni American women microbiologists Yale University alumni People from Hyde Park, New York People from Katonah, New York People from Gambier, Ohio 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers Activists from Ohio Activists from New York (state) Novelists from Ohio Scientists from New York (state) Quaker feminists American women academics