April 28, 2021 |
Photo of Tom Brock courtesy of UW–Madison University Communications.
Tom Brock, a pioneering microbiologist who redefined the bounds of life, passed away at his home in Madison in April from complications following a fall. He was 94.
Brock spent most of his scientific career at the University of Wisconsin–Madison as the E. B. Fred Professor of Natural Sciences in the Department of Bacteriology. He also chaired the department from 1980 to 1983.
Brock is widely known for opening a new field of biology studying extremophiles the microorganisms that survive the harshest conditions on Earth. He was the first to discover bacteria growing at nearly boiling temperatures in Yellowstone National Park.
Tom Brock, who discovered world-changing extremophiles, dies at 94 For news media
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As an ecologist, when Tom Brock first visited Yellowstone National Park in the mid 1960’s, he saw the colorful hot springs in a different way than most. He was stunned by the microbes present there that no one seemed to know anything about. His research that followed uncovered a previously unknown characteristic of life the ability for bacteria to live in near-boiling water. The existence of these organisms would later lead to groundbreaking discoveries in the fields of microbiology and genetics. 2017 video by Craig Wild/University Communications