Celebrating Women ’s History Month: Scientist Spotlight

Women’s History Month quiz question (and no “Googling” allowed): Who was Joan Procter? I didn’t know either until a few months ago when I learned that my colleague, Dr. Patricia Valdez, wrote a children’s book, called “Joan Procter, Dragon Doctor.”  Alfred A Knopf published Patricia’s and her illustrator Felicita Sala’s book a few weeks ago, on March 13, 2018.  Critics have already acclaimed the work: Publisher’s Weekly in a starred review wrote, “Valdez paints a portrait of a unique woman whose love for reptiles developed into a gratifying career.” So, who was Joan Procter?  She was born in London in 1897 and had a rather unusual childhood.  By age 10 she had developed a fascination for reptiles – she read voraciously about them and kept a pet lizard.  At age 16 she brought a pet crocodile to school.  And when she was ready to graduate high school, she worked for Dr. George Boulenger, a curator at the British Museum.  Intestinal ailments prevented her from going to college, but fortunately Dr. Boulenger recognized her dedication and genius, taking her under his wing. Procter presented her first scientific paper by age 19 (later published as Procter JB, On the variations of the pit viper Lachesis atria.  Proc Zool Soc London 1918:163-182), and in her early 20s she took over as curator when Dr. Boulenger retired.  Later she became reptile curator at the London Zoo, where she oversaw the building of a new reptile house and conducted intern...
Source: NIH Extramural Nexus - Category: Research Authors: Tags: blog Open Mike Source Type: funding