The NIH intramural research program is
well known for its outstanding scientific and medical
achievements, but equally important is its role in
training biomedical researchers not only from the United
States but from around the world.
As mentors of more than hundred scientists,
Thressa and Earl are respected for their rigorous training
and liberal sharing of credit in publications. Researchers
in their laboratory are challenged to defend every
new discovery in multiple alternative ways, and they
are encouraged to publish papers and assume responsibility
at a unusually early stage. Indeed, Thressa and Earl
have had a special touch with younger scientists on
their way up. Out of their laboratory have come a number
of prominent scientists, including two Nobel laureates
(Michael
Brown and Stanley
Prusiner); the CEO of a major pharmaceutical
company (P.
Roy Vagelos); and about a dozen members
of the National Academy of Sciences.
Thressa's and Earl's mentoring was not confined to
postdoctoral fellows. Several pre-doctoral researchers
in their laboratory received their doctoral degrees
from universities near NIH. Earl also extended his teaching
activities to the NIH's evening classes, which were
first administered by the Graduate School of the United
States Department of Agriculture in the 1950s and subsequently
by the Foundation for Advanced Education in the Sciences,
a non-governmental organization chartered in 1959. Furthermore,
Earl enjoyed opportunities to teach in various universities
as a visiting professor.
The Stadtmans' influence
has spread around the world. Here they pose with
the Korean Alumni of Building 3 in 2000. |
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