Rita R. Colwell | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 11th Director of theNational Science Foundation | |
| In office 1998–2004 | |
| President | Bill Clinton George W. Bush |
| Preceded by | Neal Francis Lane |
| Succeeded by | Arden L. Bement Jr. |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1934-11-23)November 23, 1934 (age 90) Beverly,Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Purdue University University of Washington |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Microbiology |
| Institutions | National Science Foundation University of Maryland College Park Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Georgetown University |
| Thesis | Commensal bacteria of marine animals; a study of their distribution, physiology and taxonomy (1961) |
| Doctoral advisor | John Liston |
| Doctoral students | Jody Deming |
Rita Rossi Colwell (born November 23, 1934) is an American environmental microbiologist and scientific administrator. Colwell holds degrees inbacteriology,genetics, andoceanography and studies infectious diseases. Colwell is the founder and Chair of CosmosID, abioinformatics company. From 1998 to 2004, she was the 11th Director and 1st female Director of theNational Science Foundation.[1] She has served on the board of directors ofEcoHealth Alliance since 2012.[2][3]
Colwell was born on November 23, 1934, inBeverly, Massachusetts. Her parents, Louis and Louise Rossi, had eight children, Rita being the seventh child born into the Rossi household. Neither her mother nor her father were from scientific backgrounds. In 1956, Rita obtained a B.S. in bacteriology fromPurdue University. She also received her M.S. in genetics from Purdue in 1957. Colwell obtained her Ph.D. from theUniversity of Washington in aquatic microbiology under the direction of microbiologist John Liston in 1961.[4][5] She participated in a post-doctoral fellowship at theCanadian National Research Council inOttawa.
Colwell is recognized for her study of global infectious disease spread through water sources and its impacts on global health.[6] Through this research, she has developed an international network that has brought attention to the emergence of new infectious diseases in drinking/bathing water, pertaining mostly to its role on thedeveloping world.
During early research and study ofcholera, Colwell discovered that cholera can laydormant in unfavorable conditions and then resume normal functions when conditions are favorable again.[1]
Many of her research papers have focused on abating the spread of cholera in the developing world by improving ways to track its spread and researching inexpensive methods for filtrating out the infection agents of cholera in water systems. Some of these tracking methods include observing weather patterns, surface water temperatures,chlorophyll concentrations, and rainfall patterns. Colwell's findings ofcorrelations between these phenomena showed that the infection rate of cholera is connected to water temperatures. This rising temperature causesalgae blooms that host cholera bacteria, and rainfall and extreme weather patterns aid in spreading cholera among water systems.[7] Colwell also concluded thatclimate change will have a profound impact on the spread of cholera.
Colwell has proposed ways people in the developing world can use inexpensive methods to filter water when water treatment facilities are not available. In one study spanning about 3 years, 65 villages in ruralBangladesh comprising 133,000 individuals, participated in an experiment in which they used foldedsari cloth or nylon mesh filters placed over water pots to acquire safe drinking water from their local waterways. These inexpensive and readily available materials yielded a 48% reduction in cholera, when compared with the control: absence of any type of filter.[8]
Colwell was the first female director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) and held this position from 1998 to 2004.[9] In a presentation to members of the foundation in 2002, she detailed what the foundation should address in the future. She explained that an educated society is critical not just for developing technology, but for supporting that development, both by the public and by the government.
Colwell is interested inK-12 science and mathematical education, and she is a proponent of increasing the number of women and minorities in science and engineering.[10] Rita Colwell was responsible for doubling the funding to the NSF initiative ADVANCE, which supports the advancement of women in academic science and engineering careers. Colwell also pushed to invest $60 million as part of a new priority area in mathematical and statistical sciences.[11]
In 2004, Colwell completed her term as director of the National Science Foundation.[12] She then became the chief scientist at Canon U.S. Life Sciences, a division ofCanon. She served as chairman of Canon U.S. Life Sciences[12] until 2006 when she was named as Senior Advisor and ChairmanEmeritus.
Colwell joined the faculty of theDepartment of Biology atGeorgetown University in 1964, and she gained tenure there in 1966. While at Georgetown, Colwell and her research team were the first to learn that the causative agent of cholera was found naturally in the waters of theChesapeake Bay. In 1972, Colwell accepted a tenured professorship at the University of Maryland. She remains a professor at theUniversity of Maryland at College Park and at theJohns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.[13] At the University of Maryland at College Park, she is a Distinguished University Professor in the Institute for Advanced Computer Studies (UMIACS), which is part of the university's College ofComputer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences.
Colwell founded the company CosmosID in 2008, and she currently serves as global science officer and chairman of the board.[9] CosmosID is abioinformatics company that develops various types of equipment to identifymicrobial activity in a variety ofecosystems.
Colwell was elected to the Board of Directors ofEcoHealth Alliance in November 2012.[3]
Colwell has authored or co-authored more than 800 scientific reports and publications, along with 19 books.[14]
In 1977, Colwell produced the award-winning filmInvisible Seas. In this 26-minute film, themicrobiology department at theUniversity of Maryland, College Park demonstrates what types ofmethodology are required of marine microbiologists when studyingmicroorganisms in the ocean. They emphasize the importance of marine microbiologists studying microorganisms in the ocean in order to determine the impactpollution has had on our oceans.[15]
Colwell is the founding editor ofGeoHealth, a journal of theAmerican Geophysical Union. Colwell recognized the increase in published Geohealth research due to the advancement in our understanding of how Earth and space science provides deeper insight into health and disease in both people and ecosystems.
Colwell's memoir "A Lab of One's Own: One Woman's Personal Journey Through Sexism in Science",[16] written with Sharon Bertsch McGrayne, was released in August 2020.
Colwell is a co-author of a letter published inThe Lancet titled "Statement in support of the scientists, public health professionals, and medical professionals of China combatting COVID-19" in which the authors declared, "We stand together to strongly condemn conspiracy theories suggesting that COVID-19 does not have a natural origin."[17] Her link with EcoHealth Alliance was not reported as a conflict of interest.
Colwell is the recipient of 61 honorary degrees, includingHonorary Doctorates fromNUI Galway, theUniversity of Notre Dame,The New School,[18] and theUniversity of St Andrews in 2016.[9]
Colwell met her husband, Jack Colwell, when he was a physical chemistry graduate student at Purdue.[1] They had two daughters and three grandchildren. Jack H. Colwell (1931–2018) was a scientist at theNational Bureau of Standards.[33]
| Professional and academic associations | ||
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| Preceded by | President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science 1996 | Succeeded by |
| Government offices | ||
| Preceded by | Director of theNational Science Foundation 1998-2004 | Succeeded by |
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