Lowell Fitz Randolph (7 October 1894 – 28 May 1980) was an American scientist, in the field of genetics, botany and horticulture. He was a Cornell University graduate who became Professor of Botany and was also employed as an associate cytologist for the United States Department of Agriculture. He was also an avid iris collector and wrote a book on the Iris genus. He carried out important research into plant chromosomes of iris, orchid genus and corn plants (such as maize). He was sometimes known as "Fitz" by his many friends and associates.
Education and early life
Lowell Fitz Randolph, was born on 7 October 1894 in Alfred, New York. Lowell's family had over 200 years of history of being deeply involved in the Seventh Day Baptist Church community, and that Lowell and his sister Vida were the first to break with that community and strong tradition and follow independent, secular paths pursuing their passion for science. Lowell was educated at local schools in Alfred and graduated from Alfred University in 1916.
In 1918, he then went to Cornell University to complete his Ph.D. and work as an assistant in botany under Rollins A. Emerson and Prof. L. W. Sharp. His thesis was on the development of normal and abnormal chloroplasts in maize, which was completed under Prof. Sharp's direction in 1921. He then studied cytology with Lester in the Botany Department and minored in Plant Breeding with Emerson.
In 1920, he attend the meetings of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in Chicago, and presented a paper to the American Naturalist Division on 'A case of maternal inheritance in Maize: Cytological Relations'. He is a member of the Association and of the Botanical Society of America.
In 1907, Herbert J. Webber started the Synapsis Club, a student/faculty organization at Cornell, Prof. Emerson continued the club and encouraged his students to become members, including Randolph. He also became a member of the Gamma Alpha Graduate Scientific Fraternity and of the Cornell Biological Society.
In 1921, he obtained his Ph.D. degree, in the botany department.
Career
In May 1922, he published 'Cytology of Chlorophyll Types of Maize' in the Botanical Gazette, Vol. 73, No. 5, pp. 337–375. Then he started working as Prof. Sharp's teaching assistant in the winter term of 1922.
He also was an instructor in botany, until 1923, when Prof. Emerson recommended Randolph to get a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) appointment at Cornell to investigate corn chromosome cytology. He started working as cytologist (cell biologist) with the Office of Cereal Investigations, for the USDA, Several other graduate students, including George Beadle, and Marcus Rhoades, were also supported at Cornell by USDA funds. He was stationed at Cornell (while working for the Office) and so could continued his research work with corn and his association with the university's department of botany.
In 1924, he started on an Advanced genetics course of Emerson and started to use John Belling's iron-aceto-carmine smear technique to clarify chromosome numbers.
In September 1924, Barbara McClintock (a 2nd year graduate), started worked as a research assistant to Randolph, as well as a working as a teaching assistant to Prof. Sharp. They then started to apply the smear technique to pollen cells of corn and hypothesized the origin of polyploidy in Maize. In 1925, they discovered a corn plant had three complete sets of chromosomes (meaning it was a triploid). They also studied the meiotic (cell division) behaviour of the chromosomes in the pollen of the corn. The results of the study were published in 1926. L.F. Randolph and B. McClintock 1926, 'Polyploidy in Zea mays' L. in American Naturalist, Vol.LX (666) Jan-Feb on pages 99–102. McClintock was very upset that her name appeared second in the article, since she thought that she had completed most of the research. Also their study techniques were also very different. Randolph was very careful, cautious and meticulous, where as McClintock liked to try out and modify new techniques. After she altered the Belling technique, Randolph was furious at me, and That was the beginning and end of a friendship she recalled in 1978. Randolph ended their collaboration and McClintock began to work under Prof. Sharp, who gave her more freedom. In 1926, he reported their findings at the 1926 International Botanical Congress at Cornell, and he then published 'A cytological study of two types of variegated pericarp in Maize' in Agr. Expt. Sta. Mem. Vol.102, (page 14).
Between 1926 and 1927, he spent a year visiting several laboratories in Europe under a travelling fellowship of the International Education Board.