Biologists (main)
From The Encyclopedia of Earth
Biologists
Biology is the science focused on the investigation of the phenomenon of life—and of living organisms (and of such living systems as ecological systems). The term derives from the Greek: bios (meaning "life") and logia (meaning "study of").
Biologists study and communicate science-based information on the structure, functioning, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and classification of these living organisms and systems.. Biology is composed of a wide spectrum of sub-disciplibes.
Pictured here, Dr. Rita R. Colwell—a microbiologist—became the 11th Director of the National Science Foundation in 1998.
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Birnbaum, Linda S. Last Updated on 2012-07-03 00:00:00 Linda S. Birnbaum, Ph.D., D.A.B.T., A.T.S., is Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and National Toxicology Program Division. As NIEHS and NTP director, Dr. Birnbaum oversees a budget that funds multidisciplinary biomedical research programs, prevention, and intervention efforts that encompass training, education, technology transfer, and community outreach. The NIEHS supports more than 1,000 research grants. Dr. Birnbaum has received numerous awards, including the Women in Toxicology Elsevier Mentoring Award, the Society of Toxicology Public Communications Award, EPA’s Health Science Achievement Award and Diversity Leadership Award, and 12 Science and Technology Achievement Awards. She is the author of several hundred peer-reviewed publications, book chapters, abstracts, and reports. Dr.... More » 
Changing Plant Characteristics to Make Biofuels Last Updated on 2011-02-09 00:00:00 A Predictable Change A new technique can change a plant's characteristics to make biofuels. A core objective of Oak Ridge National Laboratory's BioEnergy Science Center is to find ways to wring more energy out of the sugars stored in plants. In addition to developing better enzymes, improved microbes and more effective catalysts, Gerald Tuskan's team of plant biologists is exploring ways to generate more energy from biomass by "persuading" plants to store more sugar and then developing new methods of extracting these sugars. Most of the sugar found in biomass is stored in plant cell walls as cellulose and hemicellulose. The biggest roadblock to extracting sugar from these cell wall polymers has been the difficulty of using biochemical tools to break down the walls. Tuskan, a scientist in ORNL's BioSciences Division, is working with a dozen Oak... More » 
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