Oral history interview with Phillip A. Sharp 2003 January 28, May 29, and November 20 | WorldCat.org (original) (raw)

Abstract:Phillip A. Sharp's oral history interview begins with a discussion of his family, then discusses his childhood in Falmouth, Kentucky. He received his BA in chemistry and math from Union College in 1966. Then, Sharp went on to earn his Ph. D. in chemistry from the University of Illinois. Sharp went to Caltech initially for his post-doctoral studies, but after three years he joined James Watson's virology lab at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory to learn more about cell biology. In 1974, Sharp accepted an invitation at the newly created Center for Cancer Research at MIT. In 1977, Sharp and Richard J. Roberts discovered split genes, which led to the discovery of RNA splicing for which they shared the Nobel Prize in 1993. Sharp eventually became head of the biology department and director of the Center for Cancer Research. Moreover, Sharp was instrumental in the establishment of one of the first biotech companies, Genentech, Inc and he helped establish Biogen, Inc. Sharp concludes the interview with reflections on the significance of the neuroscience research community that currently surrounds and includes Harvard University