Background
He was born on February 5, 1888 in Cambridge, Massachussets, United States, the son of Charles Peter Sinnott and Jessie Elvira Smith, both of whom were teachers.
(World Perspectives: Volume 11. Owner name and 1957 date o...)
World Perspectives: Volume 11. Owner name and 1957 date on free end page. Attractive Burgundy Top edge. Pages are crisp and clean and binding is tight.
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He was born on February 5, 1888 in Cambridge, Massachussets, United States, the son of Charles Peter Sinnott and Jessie Elvira Smith, both of whom were teachers.
After graduating from high school in Bridgewater, Massachussets, in 1904, he attended Harvard University. Originally interested in becoming a writer, he was soon fascinated by biology and in that field completed a B. A. in 1908, and M. A. in 1910, and a Ph. D. in 1913.
Sinnott spent the next two years afteruniversity as an instructor at the Harvard Forestry School and the Bussey Institution. From 1915 to 1928 he was professor of botany and genetics at Connecticut Agricultural College.
In 1928, Sinnott became professor of botany at Barnard College and, in 1939, at Columbia University. He joined the faculty of Yale University the next year. There he was not only Sterling Professor of Botany but also director of the Osborn Botanical Laboratory, the March Botanical Gardens, and, from 1946 to 1956, the Sheffield Scientific School.
Sinnott's earliest papers were traditional studies of issues pertaining to evolution, notably the evolutionary history and geographical distribution of plants. Beginning in 1916, however, Sinnott focused on organic form and the biological mechanisms that control form. In the 1920's and 1930's he published a series of articles that define how genes affect the shape of fruit, particularly squash. He demonstrated that organic shape is controlled by genes and inherited according to the laws of Mendelian genetics and explained how genes exercise control differently in different species of squash.
Sinnott's work drew upon the advances and enthusiasm for genetics and mathematical techniques that then characterized American biology. Applying the new questions and techniques to botany, Sinnott in 1925 coauthored a book Principles of Genetics. He also served as editor of the American Journal of Botany.
In papers written throughout the 1930's and early 1940's, he concentrated on the study of cellular and tissue development among plants, always emphasizing the need for morerefined description and more-precise quantitative measurements. Sinnott's preoccupation with the development of the size and form of individual cells, tissues, and organs led him to recognize that analysis - the breakdown of development into its smallest components, whether genes or biochemicals - could not fully explain morphogenesis.
In a number of popular books, including Cell and Psyche (1950), The Biology of the Spirit (1956), and Matter, Mind and Man (1957), he argued that human motives, goals, and even religion had a biological basis. Articles such as "The Biological Basis of Democracy" or "Plants and the Material Basis of Civilization" defined the role that science played in American social, political, and economic life.
He died in New Haven, Connecticut.
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For Sinnott, the problem of organization was the fundamental issue for biology, he called on scientists not merely to draw upon, but to move beyond, the analytical work done in genetics and biochemistry and to address synthetic questions concerning morphology and organization. Sinnott's concern with the problem of biological organization eventually led him to apply his views to much broader issues. He had never embraced mechanical explanations, which sought to reduce biological processes to physics and chemistry, and in fact, the study of development seemed to demonstrate purpose among even the lowliest organisms. For Sinnott, both bodily development and mental activity were rooted in the self-regulating and goal-seeking nature of protoplasm.
Following a successful career in plant development and genetics, Sinnott in his later years became an advocate of science as a humanistic activity that offered important insights into religion and philosophy and reinforced American political and social objectives.
On June 24, 1916, he married Mabel H. Shaw; they had three children.