Vincent Dethier
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Vincent Gaston Dethier (February 20, 1915 – September 8, 1993) was an American
physiologist Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a subdiscipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out chemical and ...
and
entomologist Entomology (from Ancient Greek ἔντομον (''éntomon''), meaning "insect", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study") is the branch of zoology that focuses on insects. Those who study entomology are known as entomologists. In ...
. Considered a leading expert in his field, he was a pioneer in the study of insect-plant interactions and wrote more than 170 academic papers and 15 science books. From 1975 until his death, he was the Gilbert L. Woodside Professor of Zoology at the
University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) is a public land-grant research university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts system and was founded in 1863 as the ...
where he was the founding director of its Neuroscience and Behavior Program and chaired the Chancellor's Commission on Civility. Dethier also wrote natural history books for non-specialists, as well as short stories, essays, and children's books.


Biography

Vincent Dethier was born on February 20, 1915, in
Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
, one of the four children of Jean Vincent and Marguerite (Lally) Dethier. Before her marriage, his mother, who was of Irish extraction, was a school teacher in Boston. His Belgian-born father was a graduate of the
Royal Conservatory of Liège The Royal Conservatory of Liège (RCL) () is a historic conservatory in Liège, Belgium. It is one of four conservatories in the French Community of Belgium that offers higher education courses in music and theatre. Located at 29 Piercot Forgeu ...
who emigrated to the United States in the early 1900s. He was organist of the Church of the Immaculate Conception in Boston and later became Director of Music for the
Norwood, Massachusetts Norwood is a town and census-designated place in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Norwood is part of the Greater Boston area. As of the 2020 census, the population was 31,611. The town was named after Norwood, England. Norwood is ...
, public school system, and the organist and choirmaster of St. Catherine's Church in Norwood. Vincent Dethier's uncles were noted musicians — Edouard Dethier was a violinist and
Gaston Dethier Gaston Marie Dethier (1875 – 1958) was an American organist, pianist, and composer of Belgian birth. Early life Born in Liège, he was the son of organist Emile Dethier, Emile Jean Joseph Dethier (1849-1933), the brother of violinist Edouar ...
was an organist and composer. Both taught at the
Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a Private university, private performing arts music school, conservatory in New York City. Founded by Frank Damrosch as the Institute of Musical Art in 1905, the school later added dance and drama programs and became ...
for many years. Although Vincent Dethier was the first of his father's family to become a scientist, he retained a lifelong interest in
Baroque music Baroque music ( or ) refers to the period or dominant style of Classical music, Western classical music composed from about 1600 to 1750. The Baroque style followed the Renaissance music, Renaissance period, and was followed in turn by the Class ...
and played in a
recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a newsp ...
quartet during his years at the University of Massachusetts. In his 1989 autobiographical essay "Curiosity, Milieu and Era", Dethier attributed his interest in insects, which would become a central aspect of his research career, to a childhood encounter with a butterfly in a neighborhood park known as "the oval": Dethier received his undergraduate degree from
Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
and went on to obtain his PhD there in 1939. His research in the 1930s was on the feeding habits of
swallowtail butterfly Swallowtail butterflies are large, colorful butterflies in the family Papilionidae, and include over 550 species. Though the majority are tropical, members of the family inhabit every continent except Antarctica. The family includes the larg ...
caterpillars. He became the first to prove that food is selected by caterpillars not for a plant's nutritional value but for its taste and smell. His first post-doctoral position was as a biology instructor at
John Carroll University John Carroll University (JCU) is a Private university, private Jesuit university in University Heights, Ohio, United States. Located in a suburb of Cleveland, it is primarily an undergraduate, liberal arts college, liberal arts institution compo ...
in
Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...
, where he taught from 1939 to 1941. With the outbreak of World War II, he joined the Army Air Corps, serving part of his time in Africa and Middle East. He wrote his first book, ''Chemical Insect Attractants and Repellents'', in the bomb bay of a
B-25 The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Brigadier General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served ...
on what he called a "liberated" Italian typewriter. He then worked in the
Army Chemical Corps The Chemical Corps is the branch of the United States Army tasked with defending against and using chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) weapons. The Chemical Warfare Service was established on 28 June 1918, combining activiti ...
as a research physiologist until 1946. Towards the end of his time in the Army he worked with Leigh Edward Chadwick at the Edgewood Arsenal in Maryland (now the
Aberdeen Proving Ground Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG) is a U.S. Army facility located adjacent to Aberdeen, Harford County, Maryland, United States. More than 7,500 civilians and 5,000 military personnel work at APG. There are 11 major commands among the tenant units, ...
) in a long series of experiments analyzing the effects of chemicals on the chemosensors of flies. After the war ended, Dethier taught briefly at
Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...
before taking a teaching post at
Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...
, where he taught from 1947 to 1958. He was a professor of zoology and psychology 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 ...
from 1958 to 1967 and then went to
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 ...
, where for the next nine years he held the Class of 1877 Chair as Professor of Biology. In 1975, he returned to his native Massachusetts for his last appointment, the Gilbert L. Woodside Professor of Zoology at the
University of Massachusetts Amherst The University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst) is a public land-grant research university in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Massachusetts system and was founded in 1863 as the ...
. There he became the founding director of the Neuroscience and Behavior Program and chaired the Chancellor's Commission on Civility, publishing ''A University in Search of Civility'' in 1984. Vincent Dethier was an active scientist and teacher until his death at the age of 78. On September 8, 1993, he had an apparent heart attack while teaching at the University of Massachusetts. He died later that day at the
Cooley Dickinson Hospital Cooley Dickinson Hospital is a nonprofit community hospital located in Northampton, Massachusetts. It is the primary hub of Cooley Dickinson Health Care, a regional network of primary and specialty care medical providers, an affiliate of Massachus ...
in
Northampton, Massachusetts The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of Northampton (including its outer villages, Florence, Massachusetts, Florence and ...
, survived by his wife Lois (Crow) Dethier and their two sons, Jehan Vincent Dethier and Paul Georges Dethier. After his death the University of Massachusetts established the Vincent G. Dethier Award for "the faculty member who best exemplifies the ideals to which Dethier aspired."


Honors

Among the honors accorded to Vincent Dethier were election to 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 ...
(1960),
United States 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 ...
(1965), 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 ...
(1980). He was also a Fellow of the
Royal Entomological Society The Royal Entomological Society is a learned society devoted to the study of insects. It aims to disseminate information about insects and to improve communication between entomologists. The society was founded in 1833 as the Entomological S ...
and the recipient of the
Entomological Society of America The Entomological Society of America (ESA) was founded in 1889 and today has more than 7,000 members, including educators, extension personnel, consultants, students, researchers, and scientists from agricultural departments, health agencies, ...
's 1967 Founders' Memorial Award. In 1993 he received the
John Burroughs Medal The John Burroughs Medal, named for nature writer John Burroughs (1837–1921), is awarded each year in April by the John Burroughs Association to the author of a book that the association has judged to be distinguished in the field of natural hist ...
for distinguished nature writing.


Academic publications

Vincent Dethier wrote more than 170
scholarly paper Academic publishing is the subfield of publishing which distributes academic research and scholarship. Most academic work is published in academic journal articles, books or theses. The part of academic written output that is not formally publi ...
s and authored or co-authored several academic books. These include: ;Books *Vincent Dethier (1947) ''Chemical Insect Attractants and Repellents'', Blakiston Press (8 editions published between 1947 and 1972) *Vincent Dethier (1963) ''The physiology of insect senses'', Methuen *Vincent Dethier and Eliot Stellar (1961) ''Animal behavior: its evolutionary and neurological basis'', Prentice-Hall (12 editions published between 1961 and 1970) *Claude Alvin Villee and Vincent Dethier (1971) ''Biological principles and processes'', Saunders *Vincent Dethier (1976) ''Man's plague?: Insects and agriculture'', Darwin Press ;Papers This list of representative research papers spanning Dethier's career is based on Gelperin et al. (2006) pp. 19-21 *Vincent Dethier (1937) "Gustation and olfaction in lepidopterous larvae", ''Biology Bulletin'', 72:7-23 *Vincent Dethier and L. E. Chadwick (1947) "Rejection thresholds of the blowfly for a series of aliphatic alcohols", ''Journal of General Physiology'', 30:247-253 *Vincent Dethier (1951) "The limiting mechanism in tarsal chemoreception", ''Journal of General Physiology'', 35:55-65. *Vincent Dethier (1954) "Evolution of feeding preferences in phytophagous insects", ''
Evolution Evolution is the change in the heritable Phenotypic trait, characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. It occurs when evolutionary processes such as natural selection and genetic drift act on genetic variation, re ...
'', 8:33-54 *Vincent Dethier (1957) "Communication by insects: physiology of dancing", ''
Science Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...
'', 125:331-336. *Vincent Dethier and R. H. MacArthur (1964) "A field's capacity to support a butterfly population", ''
Nature Nature is an inherent character or constitution, particularly of the Ecosphere (planetary), ecosphere or the universe as a whole. In this general sense nature refers to the Scientific law, laws, elements and phenomenon, phenomena of the physic ...
'' 201:729 *Vincent Dethier (1964) "Microscopic Brains" ''Science'', 143:1138-1145 *Vincent Dethier (1973) "Electrophysiological studies of gustation in lepidopterous larvae II: Taste spectra in relation to food-plant discrimination", ''Journal of General Physiology'', 82:103-134 *Vincent Dethier (1980) "Food-aversion learning in two polyphagous caterpillars, ''Diacrisia virginica'' and ''Estigmene congrua''", ''Physiological Entomology'' 5:321-325 *Vincent Dethier (1993) "Food-finding by polyphagous arctiid caterpillars lacking antennal and maxillary chemoreceptors", ''
Canadian Entomologist ''The Canadian Entomologist'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed scientific journal covering all aspects of entomology. It is published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Entomological Society of Canada and was established in 1868. Volumes ...
'' 125(1):85-92.


Other publications

In addition to his academic publications, Vincent Dethier wrote books on natural history for non-specialists as well as essays, short-stories and children's books, several of which he also illustrated. These include: ;Natural history *''To Know a Fly'' (1962) McGraw-Hill *''The World of the Tent Makers'' (1980)
University of Massachusetts Press The University of Massachusetts Press is a university press that is part of the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The press was founded in 1963, publishing scholarly books and non-fiction. The press imprint is overseen by an interdisciplinar ...
*''The Ecology of a Summer House'' (1984)
University of Massachusetts Press The University of Massachusetts Press is a university press that is part of the University of Massachusetts Amherst. The press was founded in 1963, publishing scholarly books and non-fiction. The press imprint is overseen by an interdisciplinar ...
*''Crickets and Katydids, Concerts and Solos'' (1992) Harvard University Press (winner of the
John Burroughs Medal The John Burroughs Medal, named for nature writer John Burroughs (1837–1921), is awarded each year in April by the John Burroughs Association to the author of a book that the association has judged to be distinguished in the field of natural hist ...
) ;Children's books *''Fairweather Duck'' (1970) Walker *''Newberry, The Life and Times of a Maine Clam'' (1981) Down East Books. ;Humor *''Buy Me a Volcano'' (1972) Vantage Press *''The Ant Heap'' (1979) Darwin Press ;Philosophical essays *"Fly, rat and man: The continuing quest for an understanding of behavior" (1981) in ''Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society'', Vol. 125 *''Ten Masses: Impressions'' (1988) Alba House *"Sniff, flick, and pulse: An appreciation of interruption" (1987) in ''Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society'', Vol. 131 ;Short stories *"Haboob" (1960) ''
The Kenyon Review ''The Kenyon Review'' is a literary magazine based in Gambier, Ohio, home of Kenyon College. ''The Review'' was founded in 1939 by John Crowe Ransom, critic and professor of English at Kenyon College, who served as its editor until 1959. ''T ...
'', Vol. 22, No. 2 (anthologized in ''Gallery of Modern Fiction: Stories From the Kenyon Review'', Salem Press, 1966) *"The Moth and the Primrose" (1980) ''
The Massachusetts Review ''The Massachusetts Review'' is a literary quarterly founded in 1959 by a group of professors from Amherst College, Mount Holyoke College, Smith College, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst. It receives financial support from Five Colle ...
'', Vol. 21, No. 2 (anthologized in ''The Best American Short Stories of 1981'', Penguin Books, 1982)


Notes and references


Sources

*Bowman, John S. (ed)
"Dethier, Vincent G. (Gaston)"
''The Cambridge Dictionary of American Biography'', Cambridge University Press 1995. *Calisher, Hortense (ed.) ''The Best American Short Stories 1981'', Penguin Books, 1982. *Capinera, John L. (ed), "Dethier, Vincent Gaston"
''Encyclopedia of Entomology'' Vol. 3
Springer, 2008, pp. 1186–1187. *Dethier, Vincent
"Curiosity, Milieu and Era"
in Donald A. Dewsbury (ed.), ''Studying Animal Behavior: Autobiographies of the Founders'', University of Chicago Press, 1989. *Gelperin, Alan, Hildebrand, John, G. and Eisner, Thomas
"Vincent Gaston Dethier 1915–1993"
National Academy of Sciences, 2006 (also published in ''Biographical Memoirs: Volume 89'', National Academies Press, 2008. ) *Hanson, Frank, Schoonhoven, Louis and Prokopy, Ronald
"In memoriam: Vincent G. Dethier"
''Journal of Insect Behavior'', Volume 8, Number 1, January 1995, pp. 139–148. *''
New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
''
"Vincent Dethier, 78, Professor and Expert On Insects, Is Dead"
September 11, 1993, p. 111 *Entomological Society of America

*University of Massachusetts Amherst, Neuroscience and Behavior Program

2009


External links


Vincent Dethier, ''The physiology of insect senses'' (1963)
– full text {{DEFAULTSORT:Dethier, Vincent 1915 births 1993 deaths Harvard University alumni American entomologists University of Massachusetts Amherst faculty John Burroughs Medal recipients Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences 20th-century American zoologists United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Members of the American Philosophical Society