Robert H. Burris (April 13, 1914 – May 11, 2010) was a professor in the Biochemistry Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1961. Research in Burris's lab focused on enzyme reaction mechanisms, and he made significant contributions to our knowledge of nitrogen fixation.
Education Born in Brookings, South Dakota,Memorial Resolution of the Faculty of the University of Wisconsin-Madison on the death of Professor Emeritus Robert H. Burris Burris earned his B.S. degree in chemistry at South Dakota State University in 1936 and his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1940.
Career He did postdoctoral research with Harold Urey at Columbia University, and later moved back to Madison, eventually becoming a professor in the biochemistry department. He was chairman of the department from 1958 to 1970. He retired from active research in 1984, having trained more than 70 doctoral research students.
He died in 2010 aged 96.
Awards and distinctions 1961 – Elected to the National Academy of Sciences 1975 – Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences 1979 – Member of the American Philosophical Society 1979 – National Medal of Science 1984 – John J. Carty Award of the National Academy of Sciences in agricultural science 1985 – Wolf Prize in Agriculture 1989 – Kenneth A. Spencer Award for Meritorious Achievement in Agricultural and Food Chemistry Recognized as a Pioneer Member of the American Society of Plant Biologists.
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