author
William E. (William Ernest) Castle
1867–1962
A pioneer of early genetics, this American scientist helped show that Mendel’s ideas could explain inheritance in mammals, not just peas and plants. His experiments with rats, mice, rabbits, and other animals made him an important bridge between classical natural history and modern genetics.
1 Audiobook
Piebald rats and selection : An experimental test of the effectiveness of selection and of the theory of gametic purity in Mendelian crosses
by William E. (William Ernest) Castle, John C. (John Charles) Phillips
About the author
Born in Ohio in 1867, William Ernest Castle became one of the early leaders of genetics in the United States. He studied at Denison University, later earned his doctorate at Harvard, and spent much of his career connected with Harvard before later working at the University of California, Berkeley.
Castle is best known for bringing experimental breeding into the study of heredity. Working with animals including rats, mice, rabbits, and guinea pigs, he helped demonstrate that Mendelian inheritance could be applied to mammals. His research also influenced later work in selection, evolution, and laboratory animal genetics.
He published widely and was active during the period when genetics was taking shape as a modern science. Although some of his era’s scientific work overlapped with now-troubling eugenic thinking, Castle’s lasting reputation rests mainly on his role in establishing genetics as an experimental biological discipline.