author
W. L. Brown
A leading ant specialist of the 20th century, this American entomologist helped reshape how scientists classify ants and taught generations of students at Cornell. His work ranged from taxonomy to evolution and paleobiology, giving him an unusually wide influence in his field.
1 Audiobook
Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers, Vol. LXVIII, Sept. 1910 The New York Tunnel Extension of the Pennsylvania Railroad. The North River Tunnels. Paper No. 1155
by Bertram Henry Majendie Hewett, W. L. Brown
About the author
William L. Brown, Jr. (1922–1997) was an American entomologist best known for his work on ants. He taught entomology and evolutionary theory at Cornell University from 1960 until his retirement in 1991, and he became widely respected for his efforts to reclassify the ant family Formicidae.
Before joining Cornell, he worked with major museum ant collections in North and South America and Europe. His research interests were broad, including insect systematics, evolution, and fossil ants, and he is remembered as one of the most important ant systematists of his time.
Brown also left a strong personal legacy as a teacher and mentor. Memorial accounts from Cornell and the Smithsonian describe him as intellectually formidable, generous with younger scientists, and deeply committed to making ant taxonomy more accessible through the literature and collections he helped build.