Robert Stanley Breed (October 17, 1877 – February 10, 1956) was an American

biologist A biologist is a scientist who conducts research in biology. Biologists are interested in studying life on Earth, whether it is an individual Cell (biology), cell, a multicellular organism, or a Community (ecology), community of Biological inter ...

, born in Brooklyn, Pennsylvania. He received a bachelor's degree from

Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zepha ...

in 1898, an M.S. from the

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs, the University of Colorado Denver, and the U ...

in 1899, and a Ph.D. from

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

in 1902. In 1902 he became

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

of biology at

Allegheny College Allegheny College is a private liberal arts college in Meadville, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1815, Allegheny is the oldest college in continuous existence under the same name west of the Allegheny Mountains. It is a member of the G ...

and was there secretary of the faculty in 1907–1910. He became known especially for his researches on the post-embryonic development of insects and for his contributions to scientific journals on the public milk supply. In 1903 he published ''The Changes which Occur in the Muscles of a Beetle during

Metamorphosis Metamorphosis is a biological process by which an animal physically develops including birth transformation or hatching, involving a conspicuous and relatively abrupt change in the animal's body structure through cell growth and different ...

''. In 1913, Breed became head of bacteriology at the New York Agricultural Experiment Station in

Geneva, New York Geneva is a City (New York), city in Ontario County, New York, Ontario and Seneca County, New York, Seneca counties in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is at the northern end of Seneca Lake (New York), Seneca Lake; all land port ...

. In 1927, he served as president of the

Society of American Bacteriologists The American Society for Microbiology (ASM), originally the Society of American Bacteriologists, is a professional organization for scientists who study viruses, bacteria, fungi, algae, and protozoa as well as other aspects of microbiology. It wa ...

. From the 1920s until his death in 1956, he was a principal editor of ''

Bergey's Manual of Determinative Bacteriology ''Bergey's Manual of Systematic Bacteriology'' is the main resource for determining the identity of prokaryotic organisms, emphasizing bacterial species, using every characterizing aspect. The manual was published subsequent to ''Bergey's Manual ...

''.

Death and interment

Breed died in 1956, and was buried at the Evergreen Cemetery in Brooklyn Township, Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania.

External links

''Journal of Bacteriology'' memorial article, 1956
by Harold J. Conn * {{DEFAULTSORT:Breed, Robert Stanley American science writers American biologists People from Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania 1877 births 1956 deaths Amherst College alumni University of Colorado Boulder alumni Harvard University alumni Allegheny College faculty