Ray David Owen

Ray David Owen (October 30, 1915 – September 21, 2014) was a teacher and scientist whose discovery of unusual, “mixed,” red blood cell types in cattle twins in 1945 launched the fields of modern immunology and organ transplantation. Owen's 1945 findings were published in the journal Science. This observation demonstrated that self was “learned” by the immune system during development and paved the way for research involving induction of immune tolerance and early tissue grafting. Owen also led the successful effort to admit women as California Institute of Technology (or Caltech) undergraduates. He continued his education at a high school in Waukesha, commuting the eight miles to and from school every day from his family's farm. In an interview with the University of Wisconsin, Owen's son David opined that his father's rural upbringing influenced his career in many ways –- his work ethic, his skill at working with animals, and his support for women, minorities and other who faced undue obstacles on the path to careers in science. “He knew that talented people come from all backgrounds,” David Owen stated. Elected Member, American Philosophical Society, 1984 Distinguished Alumnus Award for Professional Achievement from Carroll University, 1986 Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal, 1993 American Association of Immunologists Excellence in Mentoring Award, 1999 Peter Medawar Medal and Prize, 2000 Waukesha South High School Wall of Fame Induction, 2009

Notable service President, Genetics Society of America, 1962 Member (1958–1961), chairman (1961–1963), Genetics Study Section of the NIH Member (1966–1967), chairman (1967–1970), Immunobiology Study Section of the NIH Chairman, Genetics Section of the NAS, 1969-1972 President's Cancer Panel, 1972-1975