Dr. Norman Borlaug, third from the left, trains biologists in Mexico on how to increase wheat yields - part of
his
life-long war on hunger.
Here's a time line of Dr. Borlaug's life:
- 1914 - Born in Cresco, Iowa
- 1933 - Leaves his family's farm to attend the University of Minnesota, thanks to a
Depression era program
known as the
"National Youth Administration"
- 1935 - Has to stop school and save up more money. Works in the Civilian Conservation
Corps,
helping starving
Americans.
"I saw how food changed them", he said. "All of this left scars on me."
- 1937 - Finishes university and takes a job in the US Forestry Service
- 1938 - Marries wife of 69 years Margret Gibson. Gets laid off due to budget cuts.
Inspired
by Elvin Charles
Stakman, he
returns to school study under Stakman, who teaches him about breeding pest-resistent plants.
- 1941 - Tries to enroll in the military after the Pearl Harbor attack, but is rejected.
Instead, the military
asked his
lab to work on waterproof glue, DDT to control malaria, disinfectants, and other applied science.
- 1942 - Receives a Ph.D. in Genetics and Plant Pathology
- 1944 - Rejects a 100% salary increase from Dupont, leaves behind his pregnant wife, and
flies to Mexico to
head a new
plant pathology program. Over the next 16 years, his team breeds 6,000 different strains of disease
resistent
wheat -
including different varieties for each major climate on Earth.
- 1945 - Discovers a way to grown wheat twice each season, doubling wheat yields
- 1953 - crosses a short, sturdy dwarf breed of wheat with a high-yeidling American breed,
creating a strain
that responds
well to fertilizer. It goes on to provide 95% of Mexico's wheat.
- 1962 - Visits Delhi and brings his high-yielding strains of wheat to the Indian
subcontinent in time to help
mitigate
mass starvation due to a rapidly expanding population
- 1970 - receives the Nobel Peace Prize
- 1983 - helps seven African countries dramatically increase their maize and sorghum yields
- 1984 - becomes a distinguished professor at Texas A&M University
- 2005 - states "we will have to double the world food supply by 2050." Argues that
genetically modified crops
are the
only way we can meet the demand, as we run out of arable land. Says that GM crops are not inherently
dangerous
because
"we've been genetically modifying plants and animals for a long time. Long before we called it science,
people
were
selecting the best breeds."
- 2009 - dies at the age of 95.
"Borlaug's life and achievement are testimony to the far-reaching contribution that one man's
towering
intellect,
persistence and scientific vision can make to human peace and progress."
-- Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
If you have time, you should read more about this incredible human being on his a
Wikipedia entry .