I have had the pleasure of having dinner last Thursday evening and lunch last Friday with Alfred Knudson. In addition to the Wikipedia link on my last blog entry, you can read a more detailed description of his career here. He is most famous for formulating the “two-hit” theory, which identified a distinct difference between hereditary versus sporadic cancer, and suggested the presence of “tumor-suppressor” genes.
Beyond a doubt, he is an excellent scientist. What struck me the most, however, while I had dinner and lunch with him is how personable, respectable, and considerate he was. He listened to the graduate students as experts in their fields… he asked questions of the graduate students with the expectation to learn something new.
I was one of the few people who had both dinner and lunch with him, and I must have made an impression on him… after lunch, when he was about to leave for his next appointment, he turned around and made sure he shook my hands before he left. That meant a lot to me.
In addition to being an excellent scientist, Alfred Knudson is a wonderful human being.
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