Professor
Doctor Alexei Yu. Rozanov (born in 1936),
Corresponding Member of the Russian
Academy of Sciences (RAS),
Member of the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Director
of the Palaeontological Institute
Appointments:
Vice-president of the
International Paleontological Association;
Vice-president of the Russian Paleontological
Society;
Deputy Chairman of the Interdepartmental Stratigraphic Committee of
Russia;
Deputy Chairman of the Academic Council on Problems of the
paleobiology
and organic world evolution of the RAS;
Deputy Chairman of the Museum Council
of the RAS;
Chairman of the International Cambrian Stratigraphy Commission (1984-94);
Member
of the Board of the International Geological Correlation
Program IUGS-UNESCO
(1990-94);
Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Paleontological Journal of the RAS;
Editorial
Board of several scientific journals, etc.
Memberships:
Member of the
Paleontological Society of the US, as well as several
others societies of the
US, France, and Australia.
Author of more than 250 publications, including
21 monographs,
many of which have been published in English.
Married to
Mrs. Nataliya E. Rozanova (born in 1950)
Deputy Director of the Vernadsky Institute
of Geochemistry
Economist
Leaving aside all of Dr. Alexei Rozanov's
numerous scientific accomplishments,
his lasting legacy might be the fact that
through all the turmoil of the break-up of
the Soviet Union, he alone among all
the Directors of Institutes of the Russian Academy
of Sciences was able to keep
his (100+ staff) institute intact. This incredible collection of
world-renowned
scientists still functions today as one of the largest (if not the largest)
paleontological
institutes in the world.
Dr. Rozanov's first specialty were the so-called "shelly"
fossils of which he postulated
and then demonstrated the existence. Moving right
along, he developed a keen interest
in the Pre-Cambrian/Cambrian Boundary and
became a renowned specialist in
early bacteria. This interest produced a serendipitous
effect.
Dr. Richard Hoover of NASA was following some leads regarding bacteria
in extra-terrestrial meteorites. He was casually referred to the work of Dr. Rozanov.
From
this has bloomed a collaboration with Dr. Rozanov, Dr. Hoover and
Dr. McKay also
of NASA (of "Martian microbes in meteorites" fame).
From various samples
of the Murchison and Efemenko meteorites, they have
isolated samples that are
uncannily similar to biotic structures which Dr. Rozanov has
illuminated in his
studies of early life on Earth. Furthermore, they have been able to
demonstrate
these specimens have not been compromised by contamination.
For
an example of Dr. Rozanov's work click this text.
