Maxine Singer: A laser-sharp intellect with a passion for science
Susanne Garvey · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 2024
We lost an extraordinary scientific leader with the passing in July of molecular biologist Maxine Singer.She was widely admired for her passionate commitment to fundamental scientific inquiry, her principled integrity, and her joy in nurturing the innate scientist in every child.She made her mark over a distinguished career at the NIH, as president of the storied Carnegie Institution of Washington (now Carnegie Science) and as a tireless advocate for science education.Maxine is legendary in the scientific community for having stepped outside of the laboratory to initiate the mid-1970s effort to address public worries about the safety of recombinant DNA research.Along with Paul Berg and other close associates, she drafted documents that outlined the risks inherent in genetic engineering and established a prudent and widely embraced set of guidelines for future recombinant DNA research.I first met Maxine in 1992, when she interviewed me for a position to help her attract resources to the Carnegie Institution and to set new projects in motion.I was fascinated by her laser-sharp intellect and her passion for science, though I was intimidated by the grand but gloomy Carnegie headquarters building in Washington, DC.I will never forget her response when I told her that despite my genuine interest in science, I was nevertheless a nonscientist.She stopped me short saying, "There's no such thing as a nonscientist.Everyone is a scientist from the earliest years of life."She added that Carnegie's scientists, who were among the best in the world, would be my teachers.Maxine took special delight in nurturing the careers of Carnegie's scientists, whose research spanned the earth, space, and life sciences.She developed personal relationships with all of them, particularly early career scientists, visiting them often in their workspaces and inviting them to her beautiful home for skillfully prepared meals.She went the extra mile for them whenever she could, and they simply loved her for this.She often spoke to me about their new research directions and scientific breakthroughs with a look of sheer joy on her face.One Carnegie scientist, who told me that Maxine's influence on him was "life-changing," recalled that she had a magnetic personality and always projected an aura of respect and empathy for others.Another recalled that she was known for asking basic but probing questions that challenged scientists to dig deeper into their brains for entirely fresh perspectives.These impromptu exchanges almost invariably expanded their horizons and pointed toward promising new research paths.Maxine was born in Brooklyn, NY, in 1931 and attended excellent public schools there.She was inspired to study chemistry and biology by a teacher whom she adored, then excelled at Swarthmore College.