Toxicological Sciences 79, 209-210 (2004)
Toxicological Sciences vol. 79 no. 2 © Society of Toxicology; all rights reserved.
EDITORIAL |
PROFILES IN TOXICOLOGY
V. K. Rowe (1914–2004)
Dow Chemical Company, Midland, Michigan 48674
V. K. (Verald) Rowe, a charter member and former president of the Society of Toxicology, passed away on 28 February 2004. V. K. Rowe was born in Warren, Illinois. He received his AB degree from Cornell College, Mt. Vernon, Iowa, in 1936, majoring in chemistry and biology. In 1937, he was granted the MS degree from the University of Iowa, majoring in biochemistry with a minor in bacteriology. In recognition of the major contributions to his chosen field of toxicology, in 1971 V. K. was granted the ScD (Honorary) degree by his alma mater, Cornell College.
In 1937, when the discipline of toxicology was still in its early formative stage, V. K. accepted a position with the Biochemical Research Laboratory of the Dow Chemical Company. He was instrumental in both the development and application of numerous testing methodologies for toxicological endpoints that subsequently became the standard conventions of testing within the field of toxicology. V. K. had the uncanny ability to recall and recite essentially any data point generated in toxicological studies reported by not only his laboratory, but all contemporary industrial, regulatory, and academic toxicology laboratories.
He set very high ethical and scientific standards for not only himself, but for anyone working (or aspiring to work) in his laboratory. A job interview with V. K. was the equivalent of a doctoral thesis defense, combined with PhD prelims, the ABT certification examination, and seven hours as an expert witness in a toxic tort trial. He was a strong proponent of prompt and full publication in the open literature of the data generated during the conduct of studies conducted within industrial toxicology laboratories. He authored or coauthored over 80 sci-entific publications during these early formative years when the number of journals accepting papers on toxicology was relatively limited compared to today.
As part of the chartering of the Society of Toxicology in 1961, V. K. served on both the initial charter Program Committee and the Finance Committee from 1961–1962. He was a member of the SOT Council from 1962–1965. From 1965–1966 he served as President-elect of SOT. In 1965 he also served on the SOT Awards Committee, which established the SOT Achievement Award and also the SOT Merit Award. From 1966–1967, V. K. served as President of SOT, and in his welcoming speech at the sixth annual meeting of the SOT, V. K. announced that the membership in SOT had now grown to 348 members, and that attendance at this sixth meeting of the SOT had "set an all time high of 475."
In addition to his active role in SOT, he was a member of many professional societies including the American Chemical Society and the American Industrial Hygiene Association. He was employed by the Dow Chemical Company from 1937 until his retirement in 1979, at which time he was one of only four Dow Scientists to attain the rank of Research Fellow, the highest Dow title for researchers. The SOT recognized his distinguished career contributions to toxicology by selecting him for the SOT Merit Award in 1976.
Reflecting on the memories collected over the course of the decade of time in which I was honored to be an understudy and colleague of V. K. Rowe, the conclusion is that he was truly a major contributor to both the formation and advancement of toxicology leading to the important and respected scientific discipline that it is today. We all owe a deep sense of gratitude to V. K. Rowe for not only his role in the initial chartering of the SOT, but also his major contributions to the entire science of toxicology.
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NOTES
1 For correspondence via fax: (989) 636-1875. E-mail: rkociba{at}dow.com
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