Lo Tsung-lo (; 2 August 1898 – 26 October 1978) was a Chinese

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

and plant physiologist. Lo was a main founder of modern

plant physiology Plant physiology is a subdiscipline of botany concerned with the functioning, or physiology, of plants. Closely related fields include plant morphology (structure of plants), plant ecology (interactions with the environment), phytochemistry (bi ...

in China. He was the first President of

National Taiwan University National Taiwan University (NTU; ) is a public research university in Taipei, Taiwan. The university was founded in 1928 during Japanese rule as the seventh of the Imperial Universities. It was named Taihoku Imperial University and served d ...

(after World War II).

Biography

Lo was born in

Huangyan ( Tai-chow dialect: Wông-ngæn K'ü; ) is a district of Taizhou, a city in Zhejiang Province, China. Huangyan has an area of and a population of approximately 570,000. It has an average annual precipitation of and an annual average temperatur ...

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiang ...

Qing China The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu people, Manchu-led Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin (1616–1636), La ...

on 2 August 1898. His father was a merchant. Lo entered

Hangzhou Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the province, sitting at the head of Hangzhou Bay, whi ...

Anding Middle School in 1911. In 1912, Lo transferred to Shanghai

Nanyang Middle School Shanghai Nanyang Model High School (), often referred to simply as Nanmo (), is one of the oldest modern Chinese schools, founded in 1901 by Sheng Xuanhuai, Minister of Transportation of the Qing dynasty. As "the beginning of public elementary ...

and graduated in 1917. In 1930, Lo obtained a PhD from

Hokkaido University , or , is a Japanese national university in Sapporo, Hokkaido. It was the fifth Imperial University in Japan, which were established to be the nation's finest institutions of higher education or research. Hokkaido University is considered ...

in Japan. Lo returned to China and in February 1930 became professor and head of the department of biology at

Sun Yat-sen University Sun Yat-sen University (, abbreviated SYSU and colloquially known in Chinese as Zhongda), also known as Zhongshan University, is a national key public research university located in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. It was founded in 1924 by and nam ...

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...

. In 1932, Lo moved to Shanghai and became a professor at

Jinan University Jinan University (JNU, ) is a public research university based in Guangzhou, China. "Jinan" literally means "reaching southward", indicating the university's original mission to disseminate Chinese learning and culture from North to South when i ...

. In 1933, Lo moved to

National Central University National Central University (NCU, ; Pha̍k-fa-sṳ: ''Kwet-li̍p Chung-yong Thài-ho̍k'', Wade–Giles: ''Kuo2 Li4 Chung Yang Ta4 Hsüeh2'' or ''中大'', ''Chung-ta'') is a public research university with long-standing traditions based in Taiwa ...

(now

Nanjing University Nanjing University (NJU; ) is a national public research university in Nanjing, Jiangsu. It is a member of C9 League and a Class A Double First Class University designated by the Chinese central government. NJU has two main campuses: the Xianl ...

) and served as a professor in its department of biology. From 1940 to 1944, Lo was a professor at

Zhejiang University Zhejiang University, abbreviated as ZJU or Zheda and formerly romanized as Chekiang University, is a national public research university based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. It is a member of the prestigious C9 League and is selected into the na ...

. In the summer of 1944, Lo became the director of the Botany Research Institute of

Academia Sinica Academia Sinica (AS, la, 1=Academia Sinica, 3=Chinese Academy; ), headquartered in Nangang, Taipei, is the national academy of Taiwan. Founded in Nanking, the academy supports research activities in a wide variety of disciplines, ranging from ...

Chongqing Chongqing ( or ; ; Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), Postal Romanization, alternately romanized as Chungking (), is a Direct-administered municipalities of China, municipality in Southwes ...

, which was the war-time capital of China during the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...

. After the war ended in 1945, Lo was sent to Taiwan by the central government to take over Taihoku Imperial University (now

). He became the acting president of National Taiwan University in 1946, and is thus regarded as its first president. In October 1946, the Botany Research Institute of Academia Sinica was moved from Chongqing to Shanghai, with Lo still assigned as its president. After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Lo became the first president of the Research Institute of Plant Physiology of the

Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); ), known by Academia Sinica in English until the 1980s, is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for natural sciences. It has historical origins in the Academia Sinica during the Republ ...

. Lo was one of the main founders of the Chinese Society for Plant Physiology, and was its first and second president. Luo was a member of

(1948 election), and academician of the

(1955 election). He died on 26 October 1978 at Zhongshan Hospital in Shanghai.

References

Zhejiang University: 我国现代植物生理学奠基人之一——罗宗洛 (One of main founders of modern plant physiology in China - Luo Zongluo)

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lo, Tsung-Lo 1898 births 1978 deaths Educators from Taizhou, Zhejiang Academic staff of Jinan University Members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences People from Huangyan District Plant physiologists Presidents of National Taiwan University Scientists from Taizhou, Zhejiang Academic staff of Zhejiang University Republic of China people who surrendered to the Chinese Communist Party