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63-701: Born in Haren, Groningen in 1959, Dekker studied at University of Utrecht , where he received a PhD in Experimental Physics in 1988. In 1988 Dekker started his academic career as Assistant Professor at the University of Utrecht; in these years he also worked in the United States as Visiting Researcher at IBM Research . It was during this period that Dekker carried out research on magnetic spin systems and on noise in superconductors and semiconductors . In 1993 he

126-523: A breakthrough was realized with carbon nanotubes. This was achieved in a collaboration with the group of Nobel laureate Richard Smalley . STM and nanolithography techniques were used to demonstrate that these nanotubes are quantum wires at the single-molecule level, with outstanding physical properties. Many new phenomena were discovered, and he and his research group established a leading position in this field of research. Dekker and his research group discovered new physics of nanotubes as well as explored

189-498: A chemist, and he had little interest in what he then considered the "messy" field of biology . What he referred to as his "formative education" was received at the University of Virginia , where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry in 1970. He went on to graduate as a Doctor of Philosophy in physical chemistry at Yale University in 1974. During his time at Yale, a course in biochemistry sparked his interest in

252-510: A culture that sends messages to women and other underrepresented groups that they don't belong in biomedical research. In October 2021, NIH principal deputy director Larry Tabak sent a letter to Kentucky Congressman James Comer addressing NIH grants to EcoHealth Alliance. Comer, who has held hearings criticizing the use of U.S. federal funds for research related to bat coronaviruses in China, subsequently accused Collins of having potentially misled

315-410: A detailed plan that charted a course for NIH's efforts over the ensuing five years. The NIH-Wide Strategic Plan, Fiscal Years 2016-2020: Turning Discovery Into Health was aimed at ensuring the agency remains well positioned to capitalize on new opportunities for scientific exploration and to address new challenges for human health. In January 2016, President Obama announced a new initiative to galvanize

378-422: A hospital patient led him to question his lack of religious views, and he investigated various faiths. He familiarized himself with the evidence for and against God in cosmology, and on the recommendation of a Methodist minister used Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis as a foundation to develop his religious views. He believes that people cannot be converted to Christianity by reason and argument alone, and that

441-516: A movement that he has since clearly distanced himself from. Dekker advocates that science and religion are not in opposition but can be harmonized. He wrote the foreword to the Dutch translation of ‘The Language of God' by Francis Collins , the former director of the National Institutes of Health . Like Collins, Dekker is a proponent of theistic evolution . He actively debates with creationists in

504-474: A public-private partnership between NIH, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration , 10 biopharmaceutical firms, and multiple non-profit organizations. In 2014, Collins worked with the larger biomedical research community to create principles and guidelines to foster rigor and reproducibility in preclinical research, including incorporating sex as a biological variable to ensure differences in treatment response between men and women are addressed. Beginning in 2014,

567-694: A regular full professorship in Molecular Biophysics at the Faculty of Applied Sciences at Delft. In 2007, he was appointed as a Distinguished University Professor at Delft. From 2010 to 2012, he was the inaugurating Chair of a new Department of Bionanoscience at the Delft University . From 2010 until 2018, Dekker acted as the Director of the Kavli Institute of Nanoscience at Delft. From 2015 until 2020 he

630-494: A rock band from Johns Hopkins University led by cancer researcher Bert Vogelstein . Lyrics of the Directors' songs included spoofs of rock and gospel classics re-written to address the challenges of contemporary biomedical research. Collins has performed at TEDMED 2012, StandUpToCancer, The 2017 Southern Methodist University Commencement and Rock Stars of Science. His passion for music also inspired him to partner with

693-546: A variety of collaborators. They included isolation of the genes for Huntington's disease , neurofibromatosis , multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 , inv(16) AML and Hutchinson–Gilford progeria syndrome . In 1993, National Institutes of Health Director Bernadine Healy appointed Collins to succeed James D. Watson as director of the National Center for Human Genome Research , which became National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) in 1997. As director he oversaw

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756-502: A volley of flattering remarks from researchers and biomedical groups." She also wrote that Collins "does have his critics", some of them who were concerned with the new director's "outspoken Christian faith". Washington Post staffer David Brown wrote that Collins's status as a " born-again Christian ... may help him build bridges with those who view some gene-based research as a potential threat to religious values." Collins's appointment

819-463: Is headed for collapse in the not too distant future" and that "science class ought to be about science, and opening the door to religious perspectives in that setting is a big mistake." In 2007, Collins founded the BioLogos Foundation to "contribute to the public voice that represents the harmony of science and faith." He served as the foundation's president until he was confirmed as director of

882-450: Is nearby, albeit with a limited number of regular international flight destinations. Leisure flights to different international destinations are scheduled throughout the year. The municipal council of Haren had 17 seats. The table below gives political party and seat counts since 1998. The last executive board consisted of VVD, PvdA and D66. There was an election in November 2018 for

945-411: Is not mainstream science. It's dangerous. It fits into the political views of certain parts of our confused political establishment." In a private email to Fauci, Collins called the authors of the declaration "fringe epidemiologists" and said: "There needs to be a quick and devastating published take down of its premises." The Wall Street Journal 's editorial board accused Collins of "work[ing] with

1008-993: The Albany Medical Center Prize in 2010 and the Pro Bono Humanum Award of the Galien Foundation in 2012, the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) Public Service Award in 2017, the Pontifical Key Scientific Award in 2018, and the Warren Alpert Foundation Prize in 2018. In 2020, he received the Templeton Prize , and was elected a Foreign Member of the Royal Society . By graduate school, Collins considered himself agnostic . A conversation with

1071-711: The American Society of Human Genetics . In 2007 he was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush. In 2008, he was awarded the Inamori Ethics Prize, as well as the National Medal of Science . Also in 2008, Collins and Steven Weinberg , a Nobel Prize recipient for physics, shared the Trotter Prize , and discussed the interplay between science and religion. Collins received

1134-735: The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) and the Chemical Heritage Foundation . Collins and Venter shared the "Biography of the Year" title from A&E Network in 2000. In 2005, Collins and Venter were honored as two of "America's Best Leaders" by U.S. News & World Report and the Harvard University Center for Public Leadership . In 2005 Collins received the William Allan Award from

1197-770: The Kennedy Center to expand the Sound Health Initiative, which was announced in February 2017. Sound Health aims to expand current knowledge and explore ways to enhance the potential for music as therapy for neurological and other disorders. While leading the National Human Genome Research Institute , Collins was elected to the Institute of Medicine and the National Academy of Sciences . He

1260-646: The Oversight Committee Republicans as to EcoHealth Alliance's activities. In 2023, the Biden administration announced an initiative to eliminate hepatitis C in the United States. Collins was the special advisor to President Biden on the hepatitis C elimination plan. Dr. Collins's wrote an op-ed in The New York Times on the elimination plan advocating that the U.S. commit the appropriate resources. On February 17, 2022, President Biden named Collins

1323-522: The Presidential Medal of Freedom and the National Medal of Science . Collins has written books on science, medicine, and religion, including the New York Times bestseller The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief . After leaving the directorship of NHGRI and before becoming director of the NIH, he founded and served as president of The BioLogos Foundation , which promotes discourse on

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1386-496: The University of Michigan faculty in 1984, rising to the rank of professor in internal medicine and human genetics. His gene-hunting approach, which he named " positional cloning ", developed into a powerful component of modern molecular genetics. Several scientific teams worked in the 1970s and 1980s to identify genes and their loci as a cause of cystic fibrosis . Progress was modest until 1985, when Lap-Chee Tsui and colleagues at Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children identified

1449-625: The relationship between science and religion and advocates the perspective that belief in Christianity can be reconciled with acceptance of evolution and science, especially through the theistic evolution idea that the Creator brought about his plan through the processes of evolution. In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Collins to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences . On October 5, 2021, Collins announced that he would resign as NIH director by

1512-544: The All of Us Research Program, in his State of the Union address. All of Us seeks to extend precision medicine to all diseases by building a national research cohort of 1 million or more U.S. participants. In other precedent-setting actions during his time as NIH director, Collins announced in November 2015 that NIH will no longer support any biomedical research involving chimpanzees. In December 2015, Collins and other NIH leaders released

1575-552: The International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium, which was the group that successfully carried out the Human Genome Project . In 1994, Collins founded NHGRI's Division of Intramural Research, a collection of investigator-directed laboratories that conduct genome research on the NIH campus. In June 2000 Collins was joined by President Bill Clinton and biologist Craig Venter in making

1638-666: The NIH Director. On 19 December 2017, Collins and the NIH lifted the Obama moratorium on gain of function research because it was deemed to be "important in helping us identify, understand, and develop strategies and effective countermeasures against rapidly evolving pathogens that pose a threat to public health ." In October 2020, Collins criticized the Great Barrington Declaration 's "focused protection" herd immunity strategy, calling it "a fringe component of epidemiology. This

1701-655: The NIH provided multi-year grants to EcoHealth Alliance , which studied bat coronaviruses, including genetically engineering bat coronaviruses called WIV1 , in collaboration with the Wuhan Institute of Virology . The grants were terminated in 2020 under the Donald Trump administration, during Trump's feud with China over the origins of COVID-19 . In January 2015, President Obama announced the NIH-led Precision Medicine Initiative (PMI), later renamed

1764-468: The NIH, Collins led the Human Genome Project and other genomics research initiatives as director of the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI), one of the 27 institutes and centers at NIH. Before joining NHGRI, he earned a reputation as a gene hunter at the University of Michigan . He has been elected to the Institute of Medicine and the National Academy of Sciences , and has received

1827-544: The NIH. Collins has also spoken at the Veritas Forum on the relationship between science and religion and the existence of God . Christopher Hitchens referred to Collins as "one of the greatest living Americans", and stated that Collins was one of the most devout believers he had ever met. He further stated that Collins was sequencing the genome of the cancer that would ultimately claim Hitchens's life, and that their friendship despite their differing opinion on religion

1890-510: The National Institutes of Health, and the Senate unanimously confirmed him for the post. He was sworn in by Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on August 17, 2009. Science writer Jocelyn Kaiser opined that Collins was "known as a skilled administrator and excellent communicator", that Obama's nomination "did not come as a big surprise", and that the appointment "ignited

1953-781: The Netherlands. In 2015 he co-wrote a children's book that explained an evolutionary creation to young children. This got translated in English as 'Science Geek Sam and his Secret Logbook'. He also co-wrote 'Dawn: A Proton's Tale of All That Came to Be', a book that combines the scientific narrative about the evolution of the cosmos with the Christian creation story. Dekker has more than 400 publications, including more than 30 papers in Nature and Science. Thirteen of his group's publications have been cited more than 1000 times, and in 2001, his group work

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2016-734: The Next Generation Researchers Initiative to improve the odds for early investigators to win NIH grants. To support the Administration's Stop Opioid Abuse Initiative, Collins launched the NIH HEAL (Helping to End Addiction Long-term) Initiative in April 2018. The NIH HEAL Initiative bolsters research across NIH to improve treatments for opioid misuse and addiction and enhance pain management. Also in 2018, Collins launched an initiative to address sexual harassment in science and change

2079-457: The acting science advisor to the president after Eric Lander resigned. He also serves as co-chair of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology . Collins's love of guitar playing and motorcycle riding is often mentioned in articles about him. While directing NHGRI, he formed a rock band with other NIH scientists. Sometimes the band, called the Directors, dueled with

2142-474: The announcement of a working draft of the human genome . He stated that "It is humbling for me, and awe-inspiring to realize that we have caught the first glimpse of our own instruction book, previously known only to God." An initial analysis was published in February 2001, and scientists worked toward finishing the reference version of the human genome sequence by 2003, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of James D. Watson and Francis Crick 's publication of

2205-549: The book was to show that "one can be intellectually in a rigorous position and argue that science and faith can be compatible", and that he was prompted to write the book because "most people are seeking a possible harmony between these worldviews [science and faith], and it seems rather sad that we hear so little about this possibility. Collins said he had been a Methodist , Presbyterian , Baptist , and Episcopalian , emphasizing that denominational differences were not essential to him. He recalled that, growing up, he participated in

2268-415: The choir of an Episcopal church . Collins is a critic of intelligent design, and for this reason he was not asked to participate in the 2008 documentary Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed . Walt Ruloff, a producer for the film, stated that by rejecting intelligent design, Collins was "toeing the party line", a claim which Collins called "just ludicrous". In an interview he stated that "intelligent design

2331-601: The council of the newly expanded Groningen municipality that commenced work on 1 January 2019, replacing Haren council. Francis Collins Francis Sellers Collins ForMemRS (born April 14, 1950) is an American physician-scientist who discovered the genes associated with a number of diseases and led the Human Genome Project . He served as director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland , from 17 August 2009 to 19 December 2021, serving under three presidents. Before being appointed director of

2394-653: The diversity of the scientific workforce. Other projects he took on early in his tenure included increased support for Alzheimer's disease research, which was announced in May 2012; the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative, announced by President Obama and Collins on April 2, 2013, at the White House; and in February 2014 the Accelerating Medicines Partnership (AMP),

2457-779: The end of the year. Four months later in February 2022, he joined the Cabinet of Joe Biden as Acting Science Advisor to the President , replacing Eric Lander . Collins was born in Staunton, Virginia , the youngest of four sons of Fletcher Collins and Margaret James Collins. Raised on a small farm in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley , Collins was home schooled until the sixth grade. He attended Robert E. Lee High School in Staunton, Virginia. Through most of his high school and college years he aspired to be

2520-452: The feasibility of molecular electronics . In 1998, they were the first to build a transistor based on a single nanotube molecule. Since 2000, Dekker has shifted the main focus of his work towards biophysics where he studies the properties of single biomolecules and cells using the tools of nanotechnology . This change of field was driven by his fascination for the remarkable functioning of biological molecular structures, as well as by

2583-696: The final stage of conversion entails a " leap of faith ". After several years of deliberation, he finally converted to Christianity during a trip to the Cascade Mountains, where he describes a striking image of a frozen waterfall as removing his final resistance, resulting in his conversion the following morning. He has described himself as a "serious Christian". In his 2006 book The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief , Collins wrote that scientific discoveries were an "opportunity to worship" and that he rejected both Young Earth creationism and intelligent design . He wrote that his own belief

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2646-548: The genetic variations that influence the risk of developing type 2 diabetes . In addition to his basic genetic research and scientific leadership, Collins is known for his close attention to ethical and legal issues in genetics. He has been a strong advocate for protecting the privacy of genetic information and has served as a national leader in securing the passage of the federal Genetic Information and Nondiscrimination Act, which prohibits gene-based discrimination in employment and health insurance. In 2013, spurred by concerns over

2709-522: The health of people living in developing nations. For example, in 2010, he helped establish an initiative called Human Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa) to advance African capacity and expertise in genomic science. Collins announced his resignation as NHGRI director on May 28, 2008, but has continued to lead an active lab there with a research focus on progeria and type 2 diabetes. On July 8, 2009, President Barack Obama nominated Collins as director of

2772-534: The locus for the gene. It was then determined that a shortcut was needed to speed the process of identification, so Tsui contacted Collins, who agreed to collaborate with the Toronto team and share his chromosome-jumping technique. The gene was identified in June 1989, and the results were published in the journal Science on September 8, 1989. This identification was followed by other genetic discoveries made by Collins and

2835-476: The long-term perspective that many interesting discoveries can be expected in this field. Current lines of research in his biophysics group are in the areas of: Source: Dekker is a Christian and active in the discussion about the relationship between science and religion, a topic on which he has co-edited several books. In 2005 Dekker became involved in Netherlands-wide discussions about Intelligent Design,

2898-647: The media to trash the Great Barrington Declaration" and of "Shut[ting] Down Covid Debate". On January 15, 2021, President-elect Joe Biden announced his selection of Collins to continue to serve as NIH Director. On October 5, 2021, Collins announced that he would resign as NIH director by the end of the year. His last day was 19 December 2021. Collins was instrumental in establishing the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) on December 23, 2011. In January 2013, Collins created two senior scientific positions on Big Data , as well as

2961-652: The nation's research efforts against cancer. Fueled by an additional $ 680 million in the proposed fiscal year 2017 budget for NIH, the National Cancer Moonshot Initiative aims to accelerate progress toward the next generation of interventions to reduce cancer incidence and improve patient outcomes. In 2016, Collins instituted a number of clinical trial reforms   to enhance protection of participants in research and improve reporting of research results in ClinicalTrials.gov. In 2017, Collins implemented

3024-469: The northern part of a ridge of sand called the Hondsrug . It contains one of two dolmens in the province of Groningen (in the village of Noordlaren ) and the largest botanical garden of the Netherlands called Hortus Haren . The municipality comprises a woodland area called Appèlbergen (east of the village of Glimmen ) and a lake called Paterswoldsemeer  [ nl ] . The first mention of Haren

3087-562: The publication of the genome of the widely used HeLa cell line derived from the late Henrietta Lacks , Collins and other NIH leaders worked with the Lacks family to reach an agreement to protect their privacy, while giving researchers controlled access to the genomic data. Building on his own experiences as a physician volunteer in a rural missionary hospital in Nigeria , Collins is also very interested in opening avenues for genome research to benefit

3150-399: The scientific community, which has not been arrived at by a careful examination of the evidence. I went through a phase when I was a casual agnostic, and I am perhaps too quick to assume that others have no more depth than I did." In a 1998 interview with Scientific American , Collins stated that he is "intensely uncomfortable with abortion as a solution to anything" and does not "perceive

3213-565: The second of his four appearances on The Colbert Report , Collins discussed his leadership at the NIH and other topics such as personalized medicine and stem cell research . And, in November 2011, Collins was included on The New Republic's list of Washington's most powerful, least famous people. Collins appeared on the series finale of The Colbert Report , participating in a chorus with several other famous people singing " We'll Meet Again ". On June 6, 2017, President Donald Trump announced his selection of Collins to continue to serve as

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3276-461: The structure of DNA . Another major activity at NHGRI during his tenure as director was the creation of the haplotype map of the human genome. This International HapMap Project produced a catalog of human genetic variations—called single-nucleotide polymorphisms —which is now being used to discover variants correlated with disease risk. Among the labs engaged in that effort is Collins's own lab at NHGRI, which has sought to identify and understand

3339-486: The subject. After consulting with his mentor from the University of Virginia, Carl Trindle, he changed fields and enrolled in medical school at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine , earning a Doctor of Medicine degree there in 1977. From 1978 to 1981, Collins served a residency and chief residency in internal medicine at North Carolina Memorial Hospital in Chapel Hill . He then returned to Yale, where he

3402-452: Was theistic evolution or evolutionary creation , which he preferred to call BioLogos . He wrote that one can "think of DNA as an instructional script, a software program, sitting in the nucleus of the cell." He appeared on The Colbert Report and on Fresh Air radio to discuss his book. In an interview with D. J. Grothe on the Point of Inquiry podcast, he said that the overall aim of

3465-481: Was Royal Academy Professor of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences . Dekker has been awarded a number of national and international prizes, including the 2001 Agilent Europhysics Prize, the 2003 Spinozapremie , the 2012 Nanoscience Prize, and the 2021 Nano Research Award. He also was granted an honorary doctorate from Hasselt University , Belgium. In recognition of his achievements, Dekker

3528-494: Was a fellow in human genetics at the medical school from 1981 to 1984. At Yale, Collins worked under the direction of Sherman Weissman , and in 1984 the two published a paper, "Directional cloning of DNA fragments at a large distance from an initial probe: a circularization method". The method described was named chromosome jumping , to emphasize the contrast with an older and much more time-consuming method of copying DNA fragments called chromosome walking . Collins joined

3591-413: Was an example of the greatest armed truce in modern times. In an interview with National Geographic in February 2007, writer John Horgan criticized Collins's description of agnosticism as "a cop-out". In response, Collins clarified his position on agnosticism so as to exclude "earnest agnostics who have considered the evidence and still don't find an answer. I was reacting to the agnosticism I see in

3654-451: Was appointed as Associate Professor at Delft University of Technology. In the mid-1990s Dekker and his team achieved success with the discovery of the electronic properties of carbon nanotubes , the first single-molecule transistor and other nanoscience . In 1999 he was appointed to the Antoni van Leeuwenhoek Professorship , a chair for outstanding young scientists. In 2000, he was appointed in

3717-788: Was awarded the Canada Gairdner International Award in 1990. He was a Kilby International Awards recipient in 1993. Collins received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement in 1994. He received the Association for Molecular Pathology Award for Excellence in Molecular Diagnostics in 1998. He received the Biotechnology Heritage Award with J. Craig Venter in 2001, from

3780-430: Was elected Member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2003, Fellow of the American Physical Society and the Institute of Physics and in 2014 he was awarded Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion . Dekker started his research on single carbon nanotubes in 1993 when he set up a new line of research to study electrical transport through single organic molecules between nanoelectrodes. In 1996

3843-472: Was in 1249. On 21 September 2012, riots broke out in Haren when over 5,000 people turned up to a birthday party that was accidentally made public on Facebook . There were over 30 arrests after vandalism and looting caused over a million euros in damage. The town of Haren contains among others the following residential areas: In addition to Haren railway station , there are regular bus services to and from Groningen, Assen and Emmen. Groningen Airport Eelde

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3906-458: Was selected as Breakthrough of the Year by the journal Science . Haren, Groningen Haren ( Dutch: [ˈɦaːrə(n)] ; Gronings : Hoaren ) is a town and a former municipality in the northeastern Netherlands . It is located in the direct urban area of the City of Groningen and, in January 2019, was merged into municipality of Groningen. Haren is a commuting town with many wealthy inhabitants. It lies on

3969-501: Was welcomed by the chief executive officer of the American Association for the Advancement of Science , and by Bernadine Healy , the former head of the National Institutes of Health . In October 2009, shortly after his appointment as NIH director, Collins stated in an interview in The New York Times : "I have made it clear that I have no religious agenda for the N.I.H., and I think the vast majority of scientists have been reassured by that and have moved on." On October 1, 2009, in

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