Marian Elliott Koshland
 The
museum is named after Marian Koshland (1921-1997), a National Academy
of Sciences member who made major contributions to the field of
immunology and molecular biology throughout her career, including
work on the cholera vaccine and groundbreaking research in the
behavior of antibodies.
Marian’s direct, hard-working, and confident approach
to life and scientific research was greatly influenced by her
upbringing in New Haven, Connecticut where she excelled in school
with the support of her father, a hardware salesman, and mother,
a teacher, while enjoying a tomboy lifestyle. Marian’s
interest in science was sparked when her younger brother suffered
a weakened immune system from typhoid fever, making him vulnerable
to frequent illness throughout his childhood.
Due to her family’s limited financial resources, Marian
supported herself through undergraduate school at Vassar College
with scholarships and a 4-year job in addition to sewing her
own clothes. She then pursued her graduate degree at the University
of Chicago, a choice influenced by the inexpensive train ticket
from Connecticut and the university’s reputation. There
she met her husband Daniel Koshland, also a research scientist.
Married 52 years, they raised a family of five (including twins)
while both pursuing research and teaching careers.
Marian’s academic posts included positions at Harvard
Medical School; Brookhaven National Laboratory; and the University
of California, Berkeley. Marian also served on various committees
for Haverford College, the National Science Foundation, National
Institutes of Health, and the National Academy of Sciences. She
was a member of numerous organizations including the Institute
of Medicine, the American Academy of Arts & Sciences and
the American Association of Immunologists (serving a term as
president).
Marian was devoted to improving public understanding of science
which she pursued throughout her career as a teacher. As a contributor
to Adviser, Teacher, Role Model, Friend: On Being a Mentor to
Students in Science and Engineering, published by the National
Academies Press in 1997, Marian shared her vision and commitment
to helping young people in science. As a role model and advocate
for the role of women in science, Marian led by example, a mother
of five who excelled at scientific research and discovery. The
Marian Koshland Science Museum has been developed in her memory
through a gift to the National Academy of Sciences by her husband,
Daniel Koshland.
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