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Edward A. Watson

Edward A. Watson, veterinarian, pathologist, researcher (b in Devon, Eng 2 Jan 1879; d at Victoria 12 Mar 1945). He came to Canada in 1896 and, with a brother, homesteaded in Saskatchewan.

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Jock Murray (Profile)

If Aaron Sorkin doesn't have Jock Murray's number on speed dial, he should. Sorkin, creator of the television hit The West Wing, could learn a thing or two from the Dalhousie University neurologist.

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Aser Rothstein

Aser Rothstein, physiologist (born 29 April 1918 in Vancouver, BC; died 4 July 2015 in Guelph, ON). He contributed enormously to the fields of cellular physiology and toxicology.

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Donald Olding Hebb

Donald Olding Hebb, psychologist (b at Chester, NS 22 July 1904; d at Halifax, 20 Aug 1985). He was a brilliant pupil who completed grades 1 to 4 in one year and 5 to 6 the next. But school proved too easy, and when he graduated from Dalhousie, his record was undistinguished.

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Hans Selye

His theorizing about a General Adaptation Syndrome, based on much experimentation on rats, provoked much controversy. Briefly put, his model suggests that all stimuli are "stressors" that produce a general response of "stress" in the affected person.

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Margaret Wilson Thompson

Margaret (Peggy) Anne Wilson Thompson, CM, human geneticist (born 7 January 1920 on the Isle of Man, England; died 3 November 2014 in Toronto, ON). Thompson contributed to human genetics through research on a variety of genetic disorders, particularly muscular dystrophy. She also cowrote Genetics in Medicine, a widely used text. While celebrated among her peers for her gifts as a scientist, mentor and teacher, she left a controversial legacy for her participation in eugenics in the early 1960s.

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Michel Chrétien

Michel Chrétien, physician, researcher, professor (b at Shawinigan, Qué 26 Mar 1936), brother of Jean Chrétien. Educated at Montréal, Boston and Berkeley, Chrétien is internationally recognized for his contribution to neuroendocrinology.

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Arthur Maxwell House

Arthur Maxwell House "Max," physician, lieutenant-governor of Newfoundland and Labrador (b at Glovertown, Nfld 1926). House came to the position after an outstanding medical career, imbued with a strong public service ethic.

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Irene Uchida

Irene Ayako Uchida, OC, geneticist (born 8 April 1917 in Vancouver, BC; died 30 July 2013 in Toronto, ON). Dr. Uchida pioneered the field of cytogenetics in Canada, enabling early screening for chromosomal abnormalities (i.e., changes in chromosomes caused by genetic mutations). She discovered that women who receive X-rays during pregnancy have a higher chance of giving birth to a baby with Down syndrome and other chromosomal abnormalities. She also discovered that the extra chromosome that causes Down syndrome may come from either parent, not only the mother.

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Armand Frappier

Armand Frappier, CC, physician, microbiologist (born 26 November 1904 in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, QC; died 17 December 1991 in Montréal, QC). Armand Frappier was a key figure in the fight against tuberculosis in Canada; he both produced the BCG (bacillus Calmette-Guérin) vaccine and advocated widespread vaccinations across the country. As founder and director of the Institut de microbiologie et d'hygiène de Montréal, he advanced medical research into infectious diseases and played an important role in the development of public health. (See also INRS-Armand-Frappier Santé Biotechnologie Research Centre.) He and his team produced a number of vaccines and other biological products (e.g., the anti-polio Salk vaccine, penicillin) and were responsible for freeze-drying blood serum for the armed forces during the Second World War. (See also Canada and the Development of the Polio Vaccine).

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Frances Oldham Kelsey

​Frances Oldham Kelsey, CM, pharmacologist (born 24 July 1914 in Cobble Hill, BC; died 7 August 2015 in London, ON). As an employee of the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Kelsey blocked the sale of thalidomide in the United States. The drug, which had been widely prescribed in Europe and Canada, was later shown to cause severe birth defects in children whose mothers had taken the drug while pregnant. In recognition of her “exceptional judgment” and determination, Kelsey received the President’s Award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service. Kelsey and her work have been widely lauded in the United States but are less known in Canada. She was made a Member of the Order of Canada shortly before her death.

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Brenda Milner

Brenda Atkinson Milner (née Langford), CC, GOQ, FRSC, FRS, neuropsychologist (born 15 July 1918 in Manchester, England). Dr. Milner pioneered the field of neuropsychology, combining neurology and psychology. Most notably, she discovered that the part of the brain called the medial temporal lobe (which includes the hippocampus) is critical for the forming of long-term memories. Milner’s later work revealed that the learning of skills involving the combination of vision and movement is not part of the medial temporal lobe system. These discoveries proved that there are different forms of memory in different brain regions. Through her observation of patients, Milner changed forever our understanding of the brain’s learning and memory mechanisms.

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Henri J. Breault

Henri Joseph Breault, medical doctor, anti-poisoning advocate (born 4 March 1909 in Tecumseh, ON; died 5 September 1983 in Exeter, ON). Breault is known for spearheading a national campaign to prevent accidental childhood poisonings. He advocated for the development of the Palm-N-Turn, a safety cap that drastically reduced child deaths due to poisoning in Canada and around the world.