Winston, Mark L. 1950-

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WINSTON, Mark L. 1950-

PERSONAL: Born April 7, 1950, in Brooklyn, NY; son of Larry and Ruth Winston; married Susan J. Katz, June 1, 1980; children: Devon. Education: Boston University, B.Sc., 1971, M.A., 1975; University of Kansas, Ph.D., 1978, postdoctoral study, 1978-79.

ADDRESSES: Office—Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, Canada. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, research assistant in chemotaxis, 1972-73; U.S. Department of Agriculture, research assistant in Gypsy Moth Section, 1973; consultant in Africanized bee management to the ministries of agriculture of Trinidad and Tobago, Guatemala, Mexico, and Panama, 1977-80; Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, assistant professor, 1980-84, associate professor, 1984-88, professor of biological sciences, 1988—, university research professor, 1990-91. Idaho State University, visiting assistant professor, 1979-80; Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Isreal, visiting Fulbright professor, 1986-87; Cornell University, Grace Griswold Lecturer, 1991; lecturer at U.S., Canadian, Israeli, Australian, and Mexican colleges and universities. Patented a novel pheromone composition for use in controlling honey bee colonies, 1990. British Columbia Pollination Working Group, organizer, 1984; Wright Institute, member, 1985-91; Pacific National Exhibition, member of Apiculture Committee, 1990-91; Agriculture Canada, member of Apiculture Advisory Committee, 1990-91; public speaker and guest on radio and television programs; consultant to Canadian Broadcasting Co. and Vancouver's Science World. Camp Solomon Schechter, volunteer nature counselor, 1983; Vancouver Committee for Adult Jewish Education, member, 1984; Pioneer House, volunteer, 1991; Burquest Jewish Community Association, member of board of directors, 1992—.

MEMBER: International Union for the Study of Social Insects (president of North American section, 1992-93), International Bee Research Association, International Society of Behavioral Ecology, Canadian Association of Professional Apiculturists (vice president, 1990—; chair of Africanized Bee Response Team, 1990—), Entomological Society of Canada, American Association of Professional Apiculturists, Entomological Society of America, Western Apicultural Society (president, 1992-93), Entomological Society of British Columbia, British Columbia Honey Producers Association (chair of Education Committee, 1981—), Sigma Xi.

AWARDS, HONORS: National Science Foundation fellow, 1978; Student Apiculture Award from Eastern Apicultural Society of North America, 1979; C. G. Hewitt Award from Entomological Society of Canada, 1985; Fulbright fellow in Israel, 1986-87; Hambleton Award from Eastern Apicultural Society, 1992; Outstanding Service to Beekeeping Award from Western Apicultural Society, 1992; Alan Clemson Award from New South Wales Apiarists Association, 1992; Gold Medal in the Natural Science, Science Council of British Columbia, 1992; Nora and Ted Sterling Prize in Controversy, Vancouver, British Columbia, 1998; Killiam Research Fellowship, Canada Council, 2000-2002; grants from U.S. National Science Foundation, NSERC, National Research Council of Canada, Science Council of British Columbia, Okanagan Valley Pollination Association, Knowledge Network of British Columbia, and Government of British Columbia, Wright Institute, and British Columbia Honey Producers Association.

WRITINGS:

The Biology of the Honey Bee, Harvard University Press (Cambridge, MA), 1987.

Killer Bees: The Africanized Honey Bee in the Americas, Harvard University Press (Cambridge, MA), 1992.

Nature Wars: People vs. Pests, Harvard University Press (Cambridge, MA), 1997.

From Where I Sit: Essays on Bees, Beekeeping, andScience, Comstock Publishing (Ithaca, NY), 1998.

Travels in the Genetically Modified Zone, Harvard University Press (Cambridge, MA), 2002.

Creator of the television series Apiculture: An Introduction to Bees and Beekeeping, broadcast by Knowledge Network of British Columbia, 1983. Work represented in anthologies, including Social Insects and the Environment, edited by G. K. Veeresh, B. Mallik, and C. K. Viraktamath, Oxford Publishing (New Delhi, India), 1990; The African Honey Bee, edited by M. Spivak, D. J. C. Fletcher, and M. D. Breed, Westview, 1991; and The Hive and the Honey Bee, Dadant and Sons, 1992. Author of a column in British Columbia Honey Producers Association Newsletter, 1981—. Editor of "Papers on Pest Management," a series, Simon Fraser University. Contributor of articles and reviews to scientific journals and beekeeping magazines. Associate editor, Canadian Entomologist, 1986—.

SIDELIGHTS: Mark L. Winston is a professor of biology at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. He is particularly interested in the life history of social insects, notably honeybees, and is the author of several books on bees and their behavior. In an interview in the Simon Fraser News, he said, "Bees are fascinating organisms, but they're much more than simply a focus for my job. In many ways, they're a paradigm for understanding the role science should play in society and for exploring the myriad ways humans interact with, understand, and manage nature."

Winston has also written books on bees and biology for the general public. One of these is Nature Wars: People vs. Pests. The book covers the age-old war between humans and various pests, including cockroaches, rats, weeds, and bees, but it also considers biotechnology and the use of pesticides, as well as alternative pest controls. Winston notes that people's fear of insects and rodents often drives them to reach for strong chemicals to destroy the pests, but asks readers to adopt a more realistic attitude toward pests, managing only those that make a major economic impact, and recognizing that a few pests are not harmful, and indeed are a necessary part of the ecosystem. In addition, he recommends avoiding the use of pesticide in favor of biological controls, which use a pest's natural enemies to reduce its numbers. In BioScience, Ronald J. Prokopy wrote, "Nature Wars is written in a clear and convincing fashion, and it is readily accessible to lay readers and professionals alike." In Discover, Bettyann Holtzmann Kevles commented that the book "leaves room for hope by setting an example of reasonableness." Quarterly Review of Biology contributor David Pimentel wrote that the book was "fair and balanced" and that it includes "the salient points that we need to understand about pest control." Marsha Salett wrote in Conservation Perspectives that Winston's writing "is so lucid and witty that Nature Wars is a 'good read' as well as a thoughtful polemic about the chemical warfare we humans wage against the natural world."

From Where I Sit: Essays on Bees, Beekeeping, and Science is a collection of articles Winston wrote for the beekeeping magazine Bee Culture, beginning in 1993. It discusses the relationship between honeybees and scientists, the public, and beekeepers. The first section of the book includes seven essays on bees and beekeeping; the second examines honeybees and the use of pesticides; the third examines political decisions that affect beekeeping; and the fourth considers research on honeybees.

Travels in the Genetically Modified Zone considers the growing debate over genetically modified crops and the food that is made from them. Winston traveled widely, interviewing scientists, activists, farmers, consumers, and government regulators about these crops and foods. He concluded that the widespread public resistance to these foods is not based on science, and has in fact impeded scientific progress in genetic modification that would ultimately benefit humanity. For example, he notes that one company developed "Golden Rice," which has far more Vitamin A than ordinary rice, can be cheaply grown in Asia, where many children become blind because of a deficiency of this vitamin. However, because of hysteria against these foods, Indian activists blocked the use of the rice, stating that it was an attempt by big Western corporations to make Asians dependent on them for a food supply.

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Audubon, March, 1998, review of Nature Wars: People vs. Pests, p. 110.

BioScience, November, 1998, Ronald J. Prokopy, review of Nature Wars, p. 959.

Booklist, November 1, 1997, Gilbert Taylor, review of Nature Wars, p. 442; June 1, 2002, William Beatty, review of Travels in the Genetically Modified Zone, p. 1658.

Choice, January, 1999, review of From Where I Sit:Essays on Bees, Beekeeping, and Science, p. 911.

Discover, April, 1998, Bettyann Holtzmann Kevles, review of Nature Wars, p. 94.

Issues in Science and Technology, spring, 1998, Fred L. Gould, review of Nature Wars, p. 86.

Kirkus Reviews, October 15, 1997, review of NatureWars, p. 1573; April 1, 2002, review of Travels in the Genetically Modified Zone, p. 480.

Kliatt, January, 1994, p. 38.

Library Journal, November 15, 1997, Teresa Berry, review of Nature Wars, p. 74; June 1, 2002, Irwin Weintraub, review of Travels in the Genetically Modified Zone, p. 187.

Los Angeles Times, March 11, 1988.

Natural History, November, 1997, review of NatureWars, p. 15.

Nature, December 11, 1997, review of Nature Wars, p. 573; October 21, 1999, review of Nature Wars, p. 743.

New Scientist, January 17, 1998, review of NatureWars, p. 45.

Publishers Weekly, October 27, 1997, review of NatureWars, p. 62.

Quarterly Review of Biology, March, 1999, David Pimental, review of Nature Wars, p. 63.

Times Literary Supplement, January 8, 1999, review of Nature Wars, p. 27.

Whole Earth Review, fall, 1999, Kim Flottum, review of From Where I Sit, p. 64.