Colin Patterson (biologist): Difference between revisions

Colin Patterson
Colin Patterson
Born	13 October 1933; London
Died	9 March 1998 (aged 64); London
Nationality	British
Occupation	Palaeontologist
Parent(s)	Maurice W. Patterson (father); Norah J. Patterson (mother)
Awards	Romer-Simpson Medal; Linnean Medal

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Colin Patterson FRS (1933–1998), was a British palaeontologist at the Natural History Museum in London from 1962 to his official retirement in 1993^[1] who specialised in fossil fish and systematics, advocating the transformed cladistics school.^[2]

Education and early life

Colin Patterson was born on 13 October 1933 in Hammersmith, London, the son of Maurice William Patterson (1908–1991) and Norah Joan (née Elliott) (1907–1984).^[3]

After National Service in the Royal Engineers, Patterson studied zoology at Imperial College, London (1954–57). He undertook postgraduate research into fossil fishes at University College London and obtained a PhD in 1961.^[3]

Career and research

Patterson was one of the architects of the cladistic revolution in the British Museum of Natural History in the 1970s. In addition to his many works on classification of fossil fishes, he authored a general textbook on evolution, Evolution,^[4] in 1978 (and a revised 2nd edition in 1999), and edited Molecules and Morphology in Evolution: Conflict or Compromise? (1987),^[5] a book on the use of molecular and morphological evidence for inferring phylogenies. He also wrote two classic papers on homology.^[6]^[7]

Patterson did not support creationism, but his work has been cited by creationists with claims that it provides evidence of the absence of transitional forms in the fossil record.^[8]^[9] In the second edition of Evolution (1999), Patterson stated that his remarks had been taken out of context:

Because creationists lack scientific research to support such theories as a young earth ... a world-wide flood ... or separate ancestry for humans and apes, their common tactic is to attack evolution by hunting out debate or dissent among evolutionary biologists. ... I learned that one should think carefully about candour in argument (in publications, lectures, or correspondence) in case one was furnishing creationist campaigners with ammunition in the form of 'quotable quotes', often taken out of context.^[10]

Awards and honours

Elected a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1993^[11]
Romer-Simpson Medal of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, 1997^[12]
Linnean Medal, 1998^[13]

Personal life

In 1955, he married the artist Rachel Caridwen Richards (b. 1932), who was the elder daughter of the artists Ceri Richards and Frances Richards. They had two daughters, Sarah (b. 1959) and Jane (b. 1963).^[3]

He died in London of a heart attack on 9 March 1998.^[14]

References

^ Fortey, R. A. (1999). "Colin Patterson. 13 October 1933--9 March 1998: Elected F.R.S. 1993". Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society. 45: 365. doi:10.1098/rsbm.1999.0025.
^ Nelson, Paul A. (1996). "A Colin Patterson Sampler". Colorado Springs, CO: Access Research Network. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c Forey, Peter L. (2004). "Patterson, Colin". In Matthew, H.C.G.; Harrison, Brian (eds.). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 43. Oxford, UK; New York: Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/69557. ISBN 0-19-861411-X. LCCN 2004005444.
^
Patterson, Colin (1978). Evolution. Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England: Routledge & Kegan Paul. ISBN 0-7100-0011-1. LCCN 77007865.
- Patterson, Colin (1999). Evolution. Comstock Book Series (2nd illustrated, revised ed.). Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. ISBN 0-8014-8594-0.
^ Patterson, Colin, ed. (1987). Molecules and Morphology in Evolution: Conflict or Compromise?. Cambridge, UK; New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-33860-3. LCCN 86023318. "Papers presented at the Third International Congress of Systematic and Evolutionary Biology, held at the University of Sussex, 4–11 July 1985."
^ Patterson, Colin (1982), "Morphological characters and homology", in Joysey, Kenneth A; Friday, A. E. (eds.), Problems in Phylogenetic Reconstruction, Systematics Association Special Volume 21, London: Academic Press, ISBN 978-0-12-391250-3.
^ Patterson, Colin (1988). "Homology in classical and molecular biology". Molecular Biology and Evolution. 5 (6): 603–625. doi:10.1093/oxfordjournals.molbev.a040523. PMID 3065587.
^ Nelson, Paul A. (Winter 1996). "Colin Patterson Revisits His Famous Question about Evolution". Origins & Design. 17 (1). Colorado Springs, CO: Access Research Network. ISSN 0748-9919. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
^ Sunderland, Luther D. (1988). Darwin's Enigma: Fossils and Other Problems (4th revised and expanded ed.). San Diego, CA: Master Books. p. 89. ISBN 0-89051-108-X. "Yet Gould and the American Museum people are hard to contradict when they say there are no transitional fossils. ... I will lay it on the line – there is not one such fossil for which one could make a watertight argument." – Patterson as quoted by Sunderland.
^ Bartelt, Karen (May–June 2000). "Review: Evolution". Reports of the National Center for Science Education (Book review). 20 (3). Berkeley, CA: National Center for Science Education: 38–39. ISSN 2158-818X. Retrieved 21 May 2015. Bartelt quoting from Patterson, Evolution (1999), p. 122
^ "List of Fellows of the Royal Society 1660 – 2007" (PDF). Royal Society. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
^ "Past Award Winners". Society of Vertebrate Paleontology. Archived from the original on 17 March 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2014.
^ "Medals and Prizes". Linnean Society of London. Archived from the original on 8 May 2015. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
^ Nelson, Gareth (2008). "Patterson, Colin". Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography. HighBeam Research. Retrieved 21 May 2015.

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+{{Short description|British palaeontologist}}
-'''Colin Patterson''' [[Fellow of the Royal Society|FRS]] (1933&ndash;1998), was a [[paleontology|paleontologist]] at the [[Natural History Museum, London]]<ref name="frs">{{cite doi|10.1098/rsbm.1999.0025}}</ref> who specialised in [[fossil fish]] and systematics, advocating the [[transformed cladistics]] school.
+{{EngvarB|date=August 2017}}
+{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2017}}
+{{Infobox academic
+| honorific_prefix   = <!-- see [[MOS:CREDENTIAL]] and [[MOS:HONORIFIC]] -->
+| name               = Colin Patterson
+| honorific_suffix   =
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+| birth_date         = {{birth date|1933|10|13|df=y}}
+| birth_place        = London
+| death_date         = {{death date and age|1998|03|09|1933|10|13|df=y}}
+| death_place        = London
+| death_cause        =
+| nationality        = British
+| citizenship        = <!-- use only when necessary per [[WP:INFONAT]] -->
+| other_names        =
+| occupation         = [[Palaeontologist]]
+| period             =
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+| title              =
+| boards             = <!--board or similar positions extraneous to main occupation-->
+| spouse             =
+| partner            =
+| children           =
+| parents            = Maurice W. Patterson (father)<br>Norah J. Patterson (mother)
+| relatives          =
+| awards             = [[Romer-Simpson Medal]]<br>[[Linnean Medal]]
+| website            =
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+}}
+'''Colin Patterson''' [[Fellow of the Royal Society|FRS]] (1933&ndash;1998), was a British [[paleontology|palaeontologist]] at the [[Natural History Museum, London|Natural History Museum]] in London from 1962 to his official retirement in 1993<ref name="frs">{{Cite journal | last1 = Fortey | first1 = R. A. | authorlink = Richard Fortey| doi = 10.1098/rsbm.1999.0025 | title = Colin Patterson. 13 October 1933--9 March 1998: Elected F.R.S. 1993 | journal = [[Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society]] | volume = 45 | pages = 365 | year = 1999 | doi-access =  }}</ref> who specialised in [[Evolution of fish|fossil fish]] and [[systematics]], advocating the [[transformed cladistics]] school.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.arn.org/docs/odesign/od171/sampler171.htm |title=A Colin Patterson Sampler |last=Nelson |first=Paul A. |authorlink=Paul Nelson (creationist) |year=1996 |publisher=[[Access Research Network]] |location=Colorado Springs, CO |accessdate=2015-05-21}}</ref>
-==Personal Life and Education==
-Colin Patterson was born on 13 October 1933 in [[Hammersmith]], [[London]], the son of Maurice William Patterson (1908&ndash;1991) and Norah Joan (née Elliott) (1907&ndash;1984).<ref name=ODNB>{{cite book|title=Oxford Dictionary of National Biography|year=2004|publisher=Oxford University Press|url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/templates/article.jsp?articleid=69557&back=}}</ref>
+==Education and early life==
-After [[national service]] in the [[Royal Engineers]], Patterson studied [[zoology]] at [[Imperial College]], London (1954&ndash;7). He undertook postgraduate research into fossil fishes at [[University College, London]] and obtained a PhD in 1961.<ref name=ODNB/>
+Colin Patterson was born on 13 October 1933 in [[Hammersmith]], London, the son of Maurice William Patterson (1908&ndash;1991) and Norah Joan (née Elliott) (1907&ndash;1984).<ref name="ODNB">{{cite encyclopedia |last=Forey |first=Peter L. |editor1-last=Matthew |editor1-first=H.C.G. |editor1-link=Colin Matthew |editor2-last=Harrison |editor2-first=Brian |editor2-link=Brian Harrison (historian) |encyclopedia=[[Dictionary of National Biography|Oxford Dictionary of National Biography]] |title=Patterson, Colin |year=2004 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |volume=43 |location=Oxford, UK; New York |isbn=0-19-861411-X |lccn=2004005444 |doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/69557}}</ref>
+After [[Conscription in the United Kingdom|National Service]] in the [[Royal Engineers]], Patterson studied [[zoology]] at [[Imperial College]], London (1954&ndash;57). He undertook postgraduate research into fossil fishes at [[University College London]] and obtained a PhD in 1961.<ref name="ODNB" />
-In 1955 he married the artist Rachel Caridwen Richards (b. 1932), who was the elder daughter of the artists [[Ceri  Richards]] and [[Frances Richards (artist)|Frances Richards]]. They had two daughters, Sarah (b. 1959) and Jane (b. 1963).<ref name=ODNB/>
+==Career and research==
-He died in London on 9 March 1998
+Patterson was one of the architects of the [[cladistic]] revolution in the [[British Museum of Natural History]] in the 1970s.  In addition to his many works on classification of fossil fishes, he authored a general textbook on [[evolution]], ''Evolution'',<ref>{{cite book |last=Patterson |first=Colin |year=1978 |title=Evolution |location=Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England |publisher=[[Routledge|Routledge & Kegan Paul]] |isbn=0-7100-0011-1 |lccn=77007865 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/evolution00coli }}
+*{{cite book |last=Patterson |first=Colin |year=1999 |title=Evolution |series=Comstock Book Series |edition=2nd illustrated, revised |location=Ithaca, NY |publisher=[[Cornell University Press]] |isbn=0-8014-8594-0}}</ref> in 1978 (and a revised 2nd edition in 1999), and edited ''Molecules and Morphology in Evolution: Conflict or Compromise?'' (1987),<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Patterson |editor-first=Colin |year=1987 |title=Molecules and Morphology in Evolution: Conflict or Compromise? |location=Cambridge, UK; New York |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |isbn=0-521-33860-3 |lccn=86023318 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/moleculesmorphol0000unse }} "Papers presented at the Third International Congress of Systematic and Evolutionary Biology, held at the University of Sussex, 4–11 July 1985."</ref> a book on the use of molecular and morphological evidence for inferring [[Phylogenetics|phylogenies]].  He also wrote two classic papers on [[Homology (biology)|homology]].<ref>{{Citation | last=Patterson | first=Colin | year=1982 | contribution=Morphological characters and homology | editor-last=Joysey |editor-first=Kenneth A|editor2-first=A. E. |editor2-last=Friday | title=Problems in Phylogenetic Reconstruction | publisher=Academic Press | location=London |series=Systematics Association Special Volume 21| isbn=978-0-12-391250-3| postscript=<!--None-->}}.</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Patterson |first=Colin |year=1988 |title=Homology in classical and molecular biology |journal=Molecular Biology and Evolution |volume=5 |issue=6 |pages=603–625 |pmid=3065587 |doi=10.1093/oxfordjournals.molbev.a040523 }}</ref>
+Patterson did not support [[creationism]], but his work has been cited by creationists with claims that it provides evidence of the absence of [[Transitional fossil|transitional forms]] in the fossil record.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Nelson |first1=Paul A. |authorlink=Paul Nelson (creationist) |date=Winter 1996 |title=Colin Patterson Revisits His Famous Question about Evolution |url=http://www.arn.org/docs/odesign/od171/colpat171.htm |journal=Origins & Design |location=Colorado Springs, CO |publisher=[[Access Research Network]] |volume=17 |issue=1 |issn=0748-9919 |accessdate=2014-12-01}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Sunderland |first=Luther D. |year=1988 |title=Darwin's Enigma: Fossils and Other Problems |edition=4th revised and expanded |location=San Diego, CA |publisher=[[Institute for Creation Research#Master Books|Master Books]] |page=[https://archive.org/details/darwinsenigmafos0000sund/page/89 89] |isbn=0-89051-108-X |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/darwinsenigmafos0000sund/page/89 }} "Yet Gould and the American Museum people are hard to contradict when they say there are no transitional fossils. ... I will lay it on the line – there is not one such fossil for which one could make a watertight argument." – Patterson as quoted by Sunderland.</ref> In the second edition of ''Evolution'' (1999), Patterson stated that his remarks had been taken out of context:
-==Professional life==
-In 1999, he authored a general textbook on evolution, ''Evolution'',<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=FrETAQAAIAAJ&q=evolution+colin+patterson&dq=evolution+colin+patterson&hl=en&ei=u3DCTKKxCsK78gaTwq38BQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCUQ6AEwAA Patterson 1999, Evolution. Comstock Pub. Associates]</ref> and edited ''Molecules and morphology in evolution: conflict or compromise?''<ref>Patterson (Ed.) 1987, Molecules and morphology in evolution: conflict or compromise? Cambridge University Press [http://books.google.com/books?id=AIoTsBzFITIC&dq=evolution+colin+patterson&source=gbs_navlinks_s]</ref> a book on the use of molecular and morphological evidence for inferring [[phylogeny|phylogenies]].
+{{Quote|text=Because creationists lack scientific research to support such theories as a young earth ... a world-wide flood ... or separate ancestry for humans and apes, their common tactic is to attack evolution by hunting out debate or dissent among evolutionary biologists. ... I learned that one should think carefully about candour in argument (in publications, lectures, or correspondence) in case one was furnishing creationist campaigners with ammunition in the form of 'quotable quotes', often taken out of context.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Bartelt |first=Karen |date=May–June 2000 |title=Review: Evolution |url=http://ncse.com/rncse/20/3/evolution |journal=Reports of the National Center for Science Education |type=Book review |location=Berkeley, CA |publisher=[[National Center for Science Education#Activities and programs|National Center for Science Education]] |volume=20 |issue=3 |pages=38–39 |issn=2158-818X |accessdate=2015-05-21}} Bartelt quoting from Patterson, ''Evolution'' (1999), p. 122</ref>}}
-Although Patterson did not support [[creationism]], his work has been cited by creationists as evidence of the absence of transitional forms in the fossil record.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Nelson|first1=Paul A|title=Colin Patterson Revisits His Famous Question about Evolution|url=http://www.arn.org/docs/odesign/od171/colpat171.htm|publisher=Access Research Network|date=1996|accessdate=1 December 2014}}</ref><ref>"Yet Gould and the American Museum people are hard to contradict when they say there are no transitional fossils ... I will lay it on the line, there is not one such fossil for which one could make a watertight argument" - Dr. Colin Patterson, Senior Paleontologist, British Museum of Natural History, London. As quoted by: L. D. Sunderland in Darwin's Enigma: Fossils and Other Problems 4th edition, Master Books, 1988, p. 89</ref>
-In "Evolution", Patterson explains how his remarks were taken out of context.
-"Because creationists lack scientific research to support such theories as a young earth ... a world-wide flood ... or separate ancestry for humans and apes, their common tactic is to attack evolution by hunting out debate or dissent among evolutionary biologists. ... I learned that one should think carefully about candor in argument (in publications, lectures, or correspondence) in case one was furnishing creationist campaigners with ammunition in the form of 'quotable quotes', often taken out of context" (p 122). <ref>http://ncse.com/rncse/20/3/evolution</ref>
-==Awards==
+===Awards and honours===
-*[[Fellow of the Royal Society]], 1993<ref>{{cite web | url = http://royalsociety.org/uploadedFiles/Royal_Society_Content/about-us/fellowship/Fellows1660-2007.pdf| title = List of Fellows of the Royal Society 1660 – 2007| publisher = Royal Society| accessdate = 2012-03-03}}</ref>
+*Elected a [[List of Fellows of the Royal Society elected in 1993|Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 1993]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://royalsociety.org/~/media/Royal_Society_Content/about-us/fellowship/Fellows1660-2007.pdf |title = List of Fellows of the Royal Society 1660 – 2007 |publisher=[[Royal Society]] |accessdate=2015-05-21}}</ref>
-*[[Romer-Simpson Medal]] of the [[Society of Vertebrate Paleontology]], 1997<ref>{{cite web|title=Past Award Winners|url=http://vertpaleo.org/Awards/Past-Award-Winners.aspx|publisher=Society of Vertebrate Paleontology|accessdate=21 May 2014}}</ref>
+*[[Romer-Simpson Medal]] of the [[Society of Vertebrate Paleontology]], 1997<ref>{{cite web |url=http://vertpaleo.org/Awards/Past-Award-Winners.aspx |title=Past Award Winners |publisher=[[Society of Vertebrate Paleontology]] |accessdate=2014-05-21 |archive-date=17 March 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190317023907/http://vertpaleo.org/Awards/Past-Award-Winners.aspx |url-status=dead }}</ref>
-*[[Linnean Medal]], 1998<ref>{{cite web|title=Medals and Prizes|url=http://www.linnean.org/The-Society/awards_and_grants/Medals+and+Prizes|publisher=The Linnean Society of London|accessdate=29 November 2014}}</ref>
+*[[Linnean Medal]], 1998<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.linnean.org/The-Society/awards_and_grants/The+Linnean+Medal.htm |title=Medals and Prizes |publisher=[[Linnean Society of London]] |accessdate=2015-05-21 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150508075512/http://www.linnean.org/The-Society/awards_and_grants/The+Linnean+Medal.htm |archive-date=8 May 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
+==Personal life==
+In 1955, he married the artist Rachel Caridwen Richards (b. 1932), who was the elder daughter of the artists [[Ceri Richards]] and [[Frances Richards (British artist)|Frances Richards]]. They had two daughters, Sarah (b. 1959) and Jane (b. 1963).<ref name="ODNB" />
+He died in London of a heart attack on 9 March 1998.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Nelson |first=Gareth |encyclopedia=[[Dictionary of Scientific Biography#Electronic version|Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography]] |title=Patterson, Colin |url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2830905989.html |accessdate=2015-05-21 |year=2008 |publisher=[[HighBeam Research]]}}</ref>
 ==References==
-{{Reflist}}
+{{Reflist|35em}}
 ==Further reading==
+* {{cite web |url=http://www.arn.org/docs/odesign/od171/sampler171.htm |title=A Colin Patterson Sampler |last=Nelson |first=Paul A. |authorlink=Paul Nelson (creationist) |year=1996 |publisher=[[Access Research Network]] |location=Colorado Springs, CO |accessdate=2015-05-21}}
-*{{cite web|last=Theunissen|first=Lionel|title=Patterson Misquoted: A Tale of Two 'Cites'|url=http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/patterson.html|date=1997}}
+* {{cite web |url=http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/patterson.html |title=Patterson Misquoted: A Tale of Two 'Cites' |last=Theunissen |first=Lionel |date=24 June 1997 |website=[[TalkOrigins Archive]] |publisher=The TalkOrigins Foundation, Inc. |location=Houston, TX |accessdate=2015-05-21}}
-*{{cite web|last1=Nelson|first1=Paul|title=A Colin Patterson Sampler|url=http://www.arn.org/docs/odesign/od171/sampler171.htm|publisher=Access Research Network|date=1996}}
+{{FRS 1993}}
 {{Authority control}}
-{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
-| NAME              = Patterson, Colin
-| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
-| SHORT DESCRIPTION = British paleontologist
-| DATE OF BIRTH     = 1933
-| PLACE OF BIRTH    =
-| DATE OF DEATH     = 1998
-| PLACE OF DEATH    =
-}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Colin}}
 [[Category:1933 births]]
@@ Line 47: / Line 100: @@
 [[Category:Alumni of Imperial College London]]
 [[Category:Alumni of University College London]]
-{{UK-biologist-stub}}

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