@humanities.cshl.edu
Center for Humanities & History of Modern Biology at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory promotes humanistic understandings of modern biology and medicine. We offer a variety of educational programs, organize public events, and publish online resources.
You are invited to the 2026 History of Science meeting celebrating "Five Decades of Nuclear Receptors: Physiology, Molecular Biology & Pharmacology!”
Register here: meetings.cshl.edu/meetings.asp...
The meeting begins at 7:00 PM on Wednesday, April 15th, and concludes on Saturday, April 18th.
Join us next week for Love Data Week!
Our own CSHL community gathers eager to learn about the cutting-edge work happening just beyond their own desks and benches. Yesterday was day 1 filled with collaboration & big ideas. Excited for another full day of idea sharing and connection at the CSHL In-House Symposium. #ScienceMakesLifeBetter
Join us this Friday for the Sydney Brenner Research Fellowship Virtual Symposium!
Friday, January 16, 2026
1:30pm-3:30pm EDT
Zoom
We will be hearing from five Brenner Fellows about their research and experience working with the CSHL archives.
Happy New Year! We look forward to welcoming you in 2026!
To make an appointment to visit the archives, please reach out to archives@cshl.edu or visit www.cshl.edu/archives/.
Image: Barbara McClintock teaching during the 1981 Plant Course at CSHL. Photograph by Herb Parsons.
Happy Holidays from the CSHL Library and Archives! We hope you have a wonderful holiday season!
Painting of Carnegie Library, CSHL (2025) by Gilbert artist-in-residence Hugo Perez.
Please join us for the Sydney Brenner Research Fellowship Virtual Symposium!
Friday, January 16, 2026
We will be hearing from five Brenner Fellows about their research and experience working with the CSHL archives.
In 1980, Walter (Wally) Gilbert received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry alongside Frederick Sanger and Paul Berg. They received the prize for pioneering a method for determining the sequence of nucleotides in a nucleic acid.
View the full scrapbook here: tinyurl.com/2k7zmwz4
Handwritten picture postcard from David Muller to his father H.J. Muller. (1933)
From the collection of Hermann J. Muller. Along with professional correspondence, the collection includes personal correspondence and memorabilia.
libgallery.cshl.edu/items/show/9...
Jim Watson’s passing marks the loss of a towering figure in modern science.
You can explore his extraordinary collection of original papers and materials at the CSHL Archives and online through the link below.
HISTORIAN OF THE LIFE SCIENCES position at CSHL!
I’m thrilled to announce that the CSHL Center for Humanities and the History of Modern Biology is inviting applications for this position.
This is a remarkable opportunity to join a unique, internationally recognized institution and the Center
It is with sadness that we acknowledge the passing of Dr. James Watson, Nobel prize-winning scientist and former Director and President of CSHL. We extend our sincere condolences to his wife Liz and family during this difficult time. www.cshl.edu/in-remembran...
New internship opportunity!
The American Philosophical Society and CSHL invite applications for a joint summer internship program for undergraduates working on junior or senior research projects related to the history of the life sciences.
More info here: apply.interfolio.com/174285
Letter from Jean Weigle to Matthew Meselson, September 7, 1960
Rest, Play, Turn Dreams Into Reality
The CSHL Archives recently acquired a series of correspondence between Matthew Meselson and Jean Weigle.
The letters primarily detail Meselson's transduction experiments, and also give us a glimpse into the close friendship they shared.
“We could have published more if we had a more aggressive, short-term vision. And we would’ve failed the prostate cancer community if we’d given them something that sounded great but didn’t last.” www.cshl.edu/the-journey-... #ProstateCancer
Synesthesia, shipwrecks, and African elephant all await you in the smelliverse! Get a guided tour from CSHL Professor Alexei Koulakov in our Cocktails & Chromosomes video. @alexkoulakov.bsky.social #NeuroSkyence youtu.be/b5i0gUz3O1I?...
The twenty-first biennial Neurobiology of Drosophila meeting started last night! We are excited to host everyone this week, use #cshldros for all of your posts!
Early-onset cancers are on the rise & scientists are racing to understand why. This NYT feature highlights research from CSHL Associate Professor Camila dos Santos on how pregnancy, breastfeeding, & even urinary tract infections can leave lasting marks on breast tissue & influence cancer risk.
How do tumors grow, spread & interact with their surroundings? Scientists gathered at CSHL last week to share answers that could shape the future of cancer therapies. Read more: www.cshl.edu/go-inside-ca...
Congratulations Dr. Lucy Shapiro!
Dr. Shapiro was honored with the 2025 Lasker~Koshland Special Achievement Award in Medical Science!
Watch Dr. Shapiro discuss some of the defining moments of her career here: tinyurl.com/y94vzhax
We are saddened to learn about the passing of Dr. David Baltimore.
A friend of CSHL since his undergraduate research in 1959, his last visit to CSHL was this March for the History of Science Meeting where he spoke about his journey in finding reverse transcriptase.
tinyurl.com/yy675k4c
Pianist Chaeyoung Park and violinist Oliver Neubauer, two rising stars in their craft, have prepared a night of splendor for the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. community. Join us on September 19 at CSHL’s Grace Auditorium. More information and tickets can be found here: www.cshl.edu/mc-events/pi...
CSHL’s John Inglis & Richard Sever have received @royalsociety.org’s
2025 Research Culture Award. www.cshl.edu/inglis-and-s...
Learn more about Dr. Matthew Meselson's research on Chemical & Biological warfare with our digital collections.
www.cshl.edu/archives-blo...
Summer days at Cold Spring Harbor!
This photograph is from from Kitty Brehme Warren's scrapbook. One of many photographs depicting life at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory!
cshl.smugmug.com/Kitty-Brehme...
The medicine you rely on. The creams in your cabinet. The injections that fight cancer. They all trace back to a single Addison’s patient in 1930—saved by an experimental treatment that came out of CSHL: www.cshl.edu/ever-use-cor...
As World Breast Cancer Research Day comes to an end, we’re sharing five stories that showcase not only our scientists’ progress, but also the donors and community members who make this work possible: www.cshl.edu/inspiring-br...
Drawings of three flies on top portion of a vertical yellow card.
Typed poem on yellow card reads: "There once was a fruit-fly named Joan, / Whose affair with a brash Protozoan / Gave results aggrevating / When, soon after the mating, / All her offsrping flew off as a clone."
For Hermann J. Muller's 65th birthday, students sent him poems with accompanying drawings by Elof Carlson. The poem and drawing below features drosophila, which Muller studied the genetics of.
History of the Lab!
The Davenport building was first used by the superintendent of the Fish Hatchery. When the Dept of Genetics was established, its director Charles Davenport lived there until he retired in 1932. It then served as a residence for staff and became known as the Carnegie Dorm.
