Chapter 12: Return to Harvard University and Biology

In 1965, it was time to move again. Columbia and New York City were stimulating places to live and work, but I felt that new colleagues in a different environment would help to keep my research productive. I had incorporated this idea into a “plan”: I would change schools every five years and when I changed schools I would also change my primary area of research. It was more exciting for me to work on something new where I had much to learn. Following this plan helped me to stay mentally young and have innovative ideas, in part because I was not encumbered by knowing all the literature in the field. Since I generally decided to start some research in areas where my new colleagues were doing experiments, the change in fields was also usually a plus for the institution…