Stephen C. Stearns (born December 12, 1946, in
Kapaau, Hawaii
Kapa'au ( haw, Kapaau) is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Hawaii County, Hawaii, Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States. Located at the northern tip of the Hawaii (island), big island of Hawaii, it is celebrated as the birthpl ...
and raised in
Hawi, Hawaii
Hawi ( haw, Hāwī; ) is a census-designated place (CDP) in Hawaii County, Hawaii. The population was 2,268 at the time of the 2020 United States Census.
Hawi is situated to the west of the community of Kapaau. Together, they comprise the mo ...
) is an American biologist, and the Edward P. Bass Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Emeritus at
Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
. He is known for his work in
life history theory
Life history theory is an analytical frameworkVitzthum, V. (2008). Evolutionary models of women's reproductive functioning. ''Annual Review of Anthropology'', ''37'', 53-73 designed to study the diversity of life history strategies used by differen ...
and
evolutionary medicine
Evolutionary medicine or Darwinian medicine is the application of modern evolutionary theory to understanding health and disease. Modern biomedical research and practice have focused on the molecular and physiological mechanisms underlying he ...
.
[.]
Education and training
* BA
Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
1967
* MSc
University of Wisconsin, Madison
A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...
1971
* PhD
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...
1975
* Miller Fellow
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...
1978
Investment in Infrastructure
* Helped to found the
European Society for Evolutionary Biology
The European Society for Evolutionary Biology (ESEB) was founded in 1987 in Basel (Switzerland) with around 450 evolutionary biologists attending the inaugural congress. It is an academic society that brings together more than 1500 evolutionary bi ...
(ESEB) in 1987.
[.] He later served on its council and as its president.
* Founded the
Journal of Evolutionary Biology
The ''Journal of Evolutionary Biology'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published monthly covering the field of evolutionary biology. It is owned by the European Society for Evolutionary Biology. The founding editor-in-chief was Stephen ...
, ESEB's main journal,
served as its first managing editor from 1986 to 1991, and later served on its Editorial Board.
* With
Tim Clutton-Brock
Timothy Hugh Clutton-Brock (born 13 August 1946) is a British zoologist known for his comparative studies of the behavioural ecology of mammals, particularly red deer and meerkats.[American Association for the Advancement of Science
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is an American international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific respons ...]
.
* 1993: European Chair of Biology at the École normale supérieure, Paris.
* 2000: Clarion Award from the
Association for Women in Communications
The Association for Women in Communications (AWC) is an American professional organization for women in the communications industry.
History
Theta Sigma Phi
The Association for Women in Communications began in 1909 as Theta Sigma Phi (), an ho ...
for a book he wrote with his wife, Beverly Peterson Stearns, ''Watching, from the Edge of Extinction.''
* 2000: Distinguished Ecologist,
University of Michigan
, mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth"
, former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821)
, budget = $10.3 billion (2021)
, endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...
.
* 2004: Raymond Pearl Memorial Lecturer, Human Biology Association.
* 2005: Fellow, Konrad Lorenz Institute.
* 2005: Fellow, Rockefeller
Bellagio Conference and Study Center
The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The second-oldest major philanthropic institution in America, after the Car ...
.
* 2005: Honorary Member of the
Swiss Zoological Society.
* 2007: Fellow, European Society for Evolutionary Biology.
* 2011: DeVane Medal for distinction in undergraduate teaching, Yale University Phi Beta Kappa.
* 2011–2012: Fellow, Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin
* 2015: Honorary Doctorate, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, University of Zurich.
* 2021: Yale College Harwood F. Byrnes/Richard B. Sewall Teaching Prize
Positions
* 1978–1983: Assistant Professor, Department of Biology,
Reed College
Reed College is a private liberal arts college in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 1908, Reed is a residential college with a campus in the Eastmoreland neighborhood, with Tudor-Gothic style architecture, and a forested canyon nature preserve at ...
* 1983–2000: Professor of Zoology,
University of Basel
The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis'', German: ''Universität Basel'') is a university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest surviving universit ...
.
* 1986–1991: Managing Editor, Journal of Evolutionary Biology
* 1991–1998: President, Tropical Biology Association.
* 1994–1998: Chair,
European Science Foundation Program in Population Biology.
* 1995: Vice president of the
Society for the Study of Evolution
The Society for the Study of Evolution is a professional organization of evolutionary biologists. It was formed in the United States in 1946 to promote evolution and the integration of various fields of science concerned with evolution and to organ ...
* 1995–1996: Dean, Faculty of Science,
University of Basel
The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis'', German: ''Universität Basel'') is a university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest surviving universit ...
* 2002–2005: Chair, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University
* 2000–present: Edward P. Bass Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology,
Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
Selected publications
;Books
* ''The Evolution of Sex and its Consequences'' (Birkhaeuser 1987)
* ''The Evolution of Life Histories'' (Oxford University Press 1992)
* ''Evolution in Health and Disease'' (Oxford University Press 1999, 2nd Ed with Jacob Koella 2007)
''Watching, from the Edge of Extinction''(first author Beverly Peterson Stearns, Yale University Press 1999)
* ''Evolution, an Introduction'' (with Rolf Hoekstra, Oxford University Press 2000, 2nd Ed 2005)
* ''Evolutionary Medicine'' (with Ruslan Medzhitov, Sinauer 2016)
;Papers
*.
*.
*.
*.
*.
References
External links
Stearns' web siteat
Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
Stearns' introductory course ''Principles of Evolution, Ecology and Behavior''at
Open Yale Courses
Open Yale Courses is a project of Yale University to share full video and course materials from its undergraduate courses.
Open Yale Courses provides free access to a selection of introductory courses, and uses a Creative Commons Attribution-Nonc ...
Evolution and Medicine (2015) with Stephen Stearns, YouTube''Evolution, Medicine, and Public Health''at
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stearns, Stephen C.
Living people
1946 births
21st-century American biologists
Yale University faculty
University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni
Yale University alumni
Evolutionary biologists
Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
Academic staff of the University of Basel