May Berenbaum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
May Berenbaum
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May Berenbaum, 2014
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| Born | July 22, 1953 |
| Nationality | American |
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| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Entomology |
| Institutions | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign |
| Thesis | Furanocoumarin Chemistry, Insect Herbivory, and Coevolution in the Umbelliferae (1980) |
| Doctoral advisor | Paul Feeny |
May Roberta Berenbaum (born July 22, 1953) is an American scientist who studies insects. She is a professor of entomology (the study of insects) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Berenbaum studies how insects and plants interact using chemicals. She is very interested in nectar, special plant chemicals called phytochemicals, honey, and bees. Her work helps us understand how to better care for bees and improve beekeeping.
She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, a very important group of scientists. In 2019, she became the main editor for their science journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. She also belongs to the American Philosophical Society and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Since 2012, she has held a special title at the University of Illinois, called the Maybelle Leland Swanlund Endowed Chair. This is the highest honor a professor can receive there. In 2014, she was given the National Medal of Science, one of the top science awards in the United States.
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Early Life and Learning
May Berenbaum finished her first degree with high honors from Yale University in 1975. She earned a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in biology. She found her interest in insects by chance, taking a class on "terrestrial arthropods" because it fit her schedule. She also became very interested in plant chemistry.
Later, she attended a talk about chemical ecology by Paul Feeny. This inspired her to combine her interests in insects and plants. She then started her Ph.D. (a higher degree) at Cornell University, with Paul Feeny as her supervisor. In 1980, she earned her Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology.
Research on Honey and Bees
Dr. Berenbaum is well known for her studies on the chemistry of honey. She has shown how important honey is as a healthy food for bees and wasps. There are about 20,000 known bee species in the world. However, many bee populations are shrinking, a problem known as colony collapse disorder.
Dr. Berenbaum's research has found that honey contains special plant chemicals called phytochemicals. These chemicals help bees in many ways. They can help bees stay warm, fight off harmful chemicals, resist sickness, heal injuries, and live longer. Some important phytochemicals include p-coumaric acid, quercetin, and caffeine. Her studies also show that sick honeybees can choose different types of honey. They pick the honey that has the chemicals they need to get better.
This research has big ideas for how people care for bees. It suggests that bees are healthier when they can make honey from many different kinds of flowers. This is called "floral diversity." Beekeepers should also leave different types of honey for their bees. This way, bees have a "honey pharmacy" to choose from when they are sick.
Career Highlights
Since 1980, Dr. Berenbaum has been a professor in the entomology department at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She has been the head of the department since 1992.
In 1996, she became a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the American Philosophical Society. She was also the editor of the Annual Review of Entomology from 1997 to 2018. In 2019, she became the editor-in-chief of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA.
Dr. Berenbaum has also led two important committees for the National Research Council. These committees looked at the future of pesticides in U.S. agriculture (in 2000) and the health of pollinators in North America (in 2007).
She has written many articles for magazines and several books about insects for everyone to enjoy:
- Ninety-nine gnats, nits, and nibblers (1989)
- Ninety-nine more maggots, mites, and munchers (1993)
- Bugs in the system: insects and their impact on human affairs (1995)
- Earwig's tail: a modern bestiary of multi-legged legends (2009)
- Honey, I'm homemade: sweet treats from the beehive across the centuries and around the world (2010)
Dr. Berenbaum is also famous for organizing the Insect Fear Film Festival. This fun event takes place at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.
Personal Life
May Berenbaum is a strict vegetarian. This means she does not eat meat. While she has studied and taught about entomophagy (eating insects) to her students, she does not eat insects herself.
Awards and Honors
Dr. Berenbaum has received many awards and honors for her work:
- A character in the TV show The X-Files was named after her. This character, Dr. Bambi Berenbaum, was a famous entomologist.
- In 1996, she won the Distinguished Teaching Award from the Entomological Society of America.
- She received the important Ecological Society of America Robert MacArthur Award in 2004. This award is for outstanding contributions to ecology.
- In 2009, she won the Public Understanding of Science and Technology Award. This was from the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
- She is an Honorary Member of the British Ecological Society.
- In March 2011, she was awarded the University of Southern California's Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement.
- In 2012, she was named a Swanlund Chair at the University of Illinois, a very high honor.
- Also in 2012, she received the Edward O. Wilson Biodiversity Technology Award.
- In November 2014, a new species of cockroach was named after her: Xestoblatta berenbaumae.
- On October 3, 2014, President Barack Obama gave her the National Medal of Science. She received the medal at a White House ceremony on November 20, 2014.
Images for kids
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May Berenbaum, 2014
