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Marten Scheffer (born 13 September 1958) is a Dutch ecologist,
mathematical biologist Mathematical and theoretical biology, or biomathematics, is a branch of biology which employs theoretical analysis, mathematical models and abstractions of the Organism, living organisms to investigate the principles that govern the structure, dev ...
and professor of Aquatic Ecology and Water Quality Management at Wageningen University and Research Centre. He was a winner of the 2009 Spinoza Prize. His research focuses on
complex systems A complex system is a system composed of many components which may interact with each other. Examples of complex systems are Earth's global climate, organisms, the human brain, infrastructure such as power grid, transportation or communication s ...
and their adaptability.


Career

Scheffer was born on 13 September 1958 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. He studied ecology at Utrecht University and gained a degree in 1985. He obtained a doctorate from the same university in 1992. He subsequently held research positions at and the governmental agency . In 1998 he became professor of Aquatic Ecology and Water Quality Management at Wageningen University and Research Centre and has since headed the department. Scheffer's research focuses on
complex systems A complex system is a system composed of many components which may interact with each other. Examples of complex systems are Earth's global climate, organisms, the human brain, infrastructure such as power grid, transportation or communication s ...
and their adaptability, finding that different ecosystems have tipping points. His research is located inside the field of ecology as well as outside of it, with studies into climate change and evolution. In 2009 Scheffer was one of three winners of the Dutch Spinoza Prize and received a 2.5 million euro grant. The awarding organisation, the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO), praised Scheffer for his contributions "to our understanding of critical transitions in complex systems, varying from shifts in shallow lakes to climate change and the collapse of ancient cultures". As there was no fourth Spinoza Prize awarded in 2009, Scheffer and his co-winners Albert van den Berg and
Michel Ferrari Michel D. Ferrari (born 15 July 1954) is a Swiss neurologist and professor of Neurology at Leiden University and Leiden University Medical Center. He was a winner of the 2009 Spinoza Prize. He is considered to be the foremost migraine expert of th ...
asked the NWO to reward them the remaining prize money, which they would spend on a collaborative research effort. Their efforts culminated in a research paper on
migraine Migraine (, ) is a common neurological disorder characterized by recurrent headaches. Typically, the associated headache affects one side of the head, is pulsating in nature, may be moderate to severe in intensity, and could last from a few hou ...
published in '' PLOS ONE'' in 2013. The paper claimed that a critical tipping point of neurons started a migraine attack. Scheffer is member of the
Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences ( nl, Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, abbreviated: KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed ...
since 2012. He is a co-founder of the
South American Institute for Resilience and Sustainability Studies South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...
and European Institute Para Limes. He was elected a foreign associate of the US
National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, 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 Nati ...
in April 2019. Scheffer won the BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award (2016) jointly with
Gene E. Likens Gene Elden Likens (born January 6, 1935) is an American limnologist and ecologist. He co-founded the Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest in 1963, and founded the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbroo ...
for contributing decisively to what the jury described as “one of the major challenges” of this scientific discipline: to understand and, where possible, anticipate ecosystem responses to human-induced alterations of the natural environment. Apart from his work in science Scheffer is also a musician, who plays the
mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...
, guitar and violin. Scheffer toured with Dutch guitar player Harry Sacksioni for several years. Together with two others he has published a CD of world music, ''Transitions''.


Publications

* ''Critical Transitions in Nature and Society'', 2009, Princeton University Press. * ''Vijver, sloot en plas'', 2005, Tirion Natuur. * ''Ecology of Shallow Lakes'', 2004, Springer Netherlands.


Art

In 2018 Scheffer unveiled a large beetle sculpture named 'Must Leave' in honour of the Centenary of Wageningen University & Research. He created the beetle together with Danish sculptor Vagn Iversen, known for his hyper-realistic installations.


References


External links


Profile at Wageningen University and Research Centre

Scheffer's personal music website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Scheffer, Marten 1958 births Living people Dutch ecologists Dutch musicians Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences Dutch limnologists Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences Scientists from Amsterdam Spinoza Prize winners Utrecht University alumni Wageningen University and Research faculty