Chris R. Somerville facts for kids

Christopher Roland Somerville is a Canadian-American biologist. He is well-known for being one of the first scientists to study a tiny plant called Arabidopsis thaliana (often just called Arabidopsis). Currently, Somerville is a Professor Emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. He also works as a Program Officer at the Open Philanthropy Project.

Life and Career

Christopher Somerville studied Math and got his PhD in Genetics at the University of Alberta. After that, he continued his research in a lab before becoming a professor. He taught at the University of Alberta, Michigan State University, Stanford University, and University of California, Berkeley. He also led the Department of Plant Biology at the Carnegie Institution for Science at Stanford University. Later, he directed the Energy Biosciences Institute at the University of California, Berkeley. He retired from teaching at UC Berkeley in 2017.

Somerville helped start several companies. He was a co-founder and Executive Chairman of Mendel Biotechnology, Inc.. He also helped start Poetic Genetics, LS9, Inc, and Redleaf Biologics. He has shared his ideas about transgenic crops (genetically modified plants) and biofuels (fuels made from plants).

In 2006, Somerville and Elliot Meyerowitz won the Balzan Prize. They received this award for their work in making Arabidopsis thaliana a special plant used for scientific studies. His interest in this plant was partly sparked by an article written by George Rédei.

While at Michigan State University, Somerville's research was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy. His team created special Arabidopsis plants that could make a type of biodegradable plastic called PHB. This plastic breaks down naturally. Companies already made PHB using bacteria. But the idea was that plants, like potatoes, could produce it more cheaply.

Many students who worked with Somerville later became successful scientists themselves. They started their own research labs.

Somerville is a member of important science groups. These include the U.S. National Academy of Sciences (since 1996), the Royal Society (since 1991), and the Royal Society of Canada (since 1993). He has received many awards. Some of these are the EPA Presidential Green Chemistry Award (2010) and the Balzan Prize (2006). He also received honorary degrees from several universities. These include the University of York (2016) and Michigan State University (2012).

Media Appearances

Christopher Somerville appeared on the TV show Bill Nye the Science Guy. He was in the episode called "Pollution Solutions." On the show, he talked about his research on biodegradable plastics made from plants, using the Arabidopsis plant.

Research Highlights

• He pioneered a way of studying how plants work at a tiny, chemical level. This included looking at how plants use light and make fats and cellulose.
• He was the first to find a specific gene in A. thaliana using a special mapping technique.
• He helped create a big online database about Arabidopsis called The Arabidopsis Information Resource (TAIR).

See also

• History of research on Arabidopsis thaliana