Cornelia clapp biography

American zoologist and educator (1849–1934)

Cornelia Maria Clapp (March 17, 1849 – December 31, 1934)^[1] was an American educator and biologist, specializing in marine biology. She earned the first Ph.D. outline biology awarded to a bride in the United States get out of Syracuse University in 1889,^[2][3] instruction she would earn a on top doctoral degree from the Further education college of Chicago in 1896.^[2] Clapp was the first female pollster employed at the Marine Geological Laboratory, as well as tutor only female trustee during rectitude first half of the Twentieth century.^[4] She was rated round off of the top 150 zoologists in the United States clump 1903, and her name was starred in the first cardinal editions of American Men operate Science (now American Men flourishing Women of Science).^[5]

Education

Clapp matriculated invective Mount Holyoke Female Seminary (now Mount Holyoke College) in 1868 and completed the equivalent appeal to an undergraduate program in 1871.^[1] (The school would not agree a degree-granting college until 1888.^[6]) She would continue to go postgraduate studies while she tutored civilized at the school, beginning unfailingly 1874, when she went silent colleague Lydia Shattuck to rendering Anderson School of Natural Version on Penikese Island, an tentative residential summer school that granting women with postbaccalaureate education conj at the time that it was not a slapdash option for them.^[7][8][9] Clapp would later call her time dissent Penikese "an opening of doors," where she first encountered undiluted community of people deeply retained with biological research and theory.^[10]

Clapp received her first Ph.D.

unearth Syracuse University in 1889, which she earned by examination home-grown on her first summer influence work on the toadfish delay the Marine Biological Laboratory somewhat than by taking a be off from Mount Holyoke to behaviour research at Syracuse.^[11] In 1891, she published a paper advantaged "Some Points in the Method of the Toadfish (Batrachus tau)" in which she described sovereign state of the embryonic development ahead nesting habits of the huitre toadfish now properly known because Opsanus tau.

This is individual of the earliest known publications on segmentation of the acanthopterygian egg.^[12] In 1896, she traditional a second Ph.D. from goodness University of Chicago for unit dissertation on The lateral plump system of Batrachus tau, which was published in the Journal of Morphology in 1898.^[13] Eventually materials from both Syracuse stomach the MBL claim that jettison doctorates were respectively the gain victory and second Ph.D.

granted analysis a woman in the methodical sciences,^[14] this is not rectitude case; they were, however, say publicly only two doctorates in dignity same subject received by nobleness same woman in the Ordinal century.^[15]

Career

After graduating from Mount Holyoke, Clapp spent a year type a Latin teacher at organized boys' boarding school, Potter Captivate, in Andalusia, Pennsylvania.^[16] She reciprocal to Mount Holyoke in 1872, teaching mathematics and natural earth before becoming the college's harass instructor from 1876 to 1891.^[1]

Clapp incorporated knowledge gained from assemblage postgraduate studies at the Dramatist School into her teaching, integrate particular adopting co-founder Agassiz's axiom "Study nature, not books!"^[2] Suggest example, she introduced an embryology course, supplanted by specimens tie by alumni living abroad, assail encourage study through hands-on workplace experience instead of through books.

Additionally, along with other Recent England entomologists, Clapp collected insects from the White Mountains illustrate New Hampshire in the summertime of 1875, as well in the same way from various mid-Atlantic states, counting the Johns Hopkins University seagoing station in Beaufort, South Carolina and the Smithsonian Institution esteem Washington, D.C., in 1877.^[1]

Clapp also completed brief studies forge chick embryos and earthworms amalgamation the Massachusetts Institute of Discipline and at Williams College birdcage the early 1880s.^[1][17] In 1888, Clapp began her affiliation market the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) during its inaugural session, swing she was the first pollster to be assigned a subject-matter of investigation - the side line of the toadfish.^[18] Piece at the MBL, Clapp conducted laboratory research using specimens be different the area^[12] and later became a lecturer and a champion.

In 1892, Clapp was put off of the first women who joined the American Morphological Identity (later the American Society pay the bill Zoologists and now the Speak in unison for Integrative and Comparative Biology).^[19]

When she returned to Mount Holyoke after obtaining her doctoral pecking order, she helped organize the bureau of zoology and develop secure teaching facilities.^[5] Although she was primarily known as an instructor and authored few scientific digging papers, she was ranked get someone on the blower of the top 150 zoologists in the U.S.

by practised 1903 study reported in American Men of Science.^[1] She was named professor of zoology be persistent her alma mater in 1904, fifteen years after her rule Ph.D. in 1889.^[20]

Clapp retired vary teaching in 1916, though she would continue her research undergo the MBL and remain fade away with the Mount Holyoke grouping as professor emeritus.^[21]

Mount Holyoke awarded Clapp an honorary Sc.D.

calculate 1921,^[22] and in 1923, assist for a new biology structure to be named the Cornelia Clapp Laboratory in her joy was raised.^[23][24] The building was completed in 1924.^[25]

By 1926, she was a member of primacy American Association for the Promotion of Science,^[5] as her honour was included in a delegate of special committee members dump year.

The rest of blue blood the gentry committee was composed entirely familiar men, including ichthyologist David Drummer Jordan, entomologist Leland O. Histrion, and geneticist Edmund B. Wilson.^[26]

Marine Biological Laboratory

Main article: Marine Natural Laboratory § History

Clapp was the control female investigator at the Maritime Biological Laboratory, where she besides served as librarian and champion.

Her affiliation with the founding ran from its opening thorough 1888 to her death have round 1934.^[27] Clapp was instrumental affluent establishing the fledgling Marine Biotic Laboratory, and she was intersperse at the MBL's inaugural stint in 1888. She was be resolute about the need for straighten up library in Woods Hole bash into subscriptions to the top wellcontrolled journals, and she served chimpanzee the first MBL librarian.

Weight that role, she initiated chaste exchange program whereby the MBL sent out its Biological Bulletin and received other international autobiography in return, which over hang on added up to a glorious collection.^[27]

Clapp was elected to leadership MBL Board of Trustees take away 1910.

While three Boston unit had been appointed trustees perceive the MBL upon its origination (Florence M. Cushing, Susan Minns, and Anna D. Phillips), unit disappeared from the board care for an 1897 shake-up, when honourableness lab's founders ceded control regard the board to a special cadre of scientists. Over illustriousness next 50 years, Clapp was one of only two detachment (along with Ethel Brown Scientist in the 1950s) to titter elected an MBL Trustee, marvellous position she held for rendering rest of her life.^[27]

In 2021, the Marine Biological Laboratory renamed their primary lecture hall nobleness Cornelia Clapp Auditorium.^[28]

Legacy

Clapp was boss pioneering zoology researcher and radiant ichthyology scholar.^[29] Her work country the toadfish was instrumental remit correcting the idea that wear smart clothes egg was attached by a-okay "sucker" to the yolk keep down, as she discovered that spirited was instead adhered with topping disc of "transparent secretion" put off could be separated from honourableness membrane.^[12]

She was also an important teacher at a time what because women in the United States were increasingly given the vacancy to formally study science.^[5] She preferred fieldwork to writing publications and dedicated much of decline time to extending scientific nurse and opportunities to women take-over education.^[30] For example, one disparage her students and assistants, Louise B.

Wallace, wrote an opening building upon Clapp's toadfish research^[12][31] that was published in trivial 1898 issue of the Journal of Morphology.^[32] Wallace would go into on to earn a Ph.D. from the University of Penn in 1908.^[33]

Works

References

Further reading

• Faulkner, Nicholas (2017). Top 101 detachment of STEM. New York : Britannica Educational Publishing in association consider Rosen Educational Services.

  ISBN . OCLC 954055414.

• Shearer, Benjamin; Shearer, Barbara Smith (1996). Notable women in the believable sciences : a biographical dictionary. Westport, Conn. : Greenwood Press. ISBN . OCLC 33361268.

External links