October 23, 2013

Madigan to deliver Emeritus Faculty Lecture

by Pete Rosenbery

CARBONDALE, Ill. -- An overview of the extreme environments in Antarctica is the focus of a lecture next week at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

Michael T. Madigan, professor and distinguished scholar emeritus in the Department of Microbiology will present the 2013 Emeritus Faculty Lecture at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 29, in the SIU School of Law Hiram H. Lesar Building auditorium.

Madigan’s discussion, “Life on the Edge: Microbial Life in Antarctica,” will also focus on his research experiences there.  The event is free and the public is welcome to attend.

Madigan has led eight field teams in Antarctica and for the past 15 years Madigan, his students and collaborators studied the microbiology of the Dry Valley lakes funded by the National Science Foundation.

Madigan, who retired in 2011, conducted research on bacteria that inhabit extreme environments and taught both undergraduate and graduate students for 33 years.  He earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and education from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, and his master’s and doctorate degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Department of Bacteriology. He also spent three years as a postdoctoral scientist at the University of Indiana-Bloomington in the Department of Biology.

At SIU Carbondale, Madigan taught lecture and laboratory courses in introductory biology and bacterial diversity, and authored several editions of the microbiology text, “Brock Biology of Microorganisms.” The 14th edition of the book will appear in January 2014.

Among his awards, Madigan received the university’s Outstanding Scholar Award in 2001, the College of Science Outstanding Researcher Award in 1993 and the college’s Outstanding Teaching Award in 1988.