ABSTRACT
Joshua Lederberg cautioned any future biographer who might be interested in studying his life and work. He advised US presidents and international organizations on a wide variety of issues and devoted a prodigious amount of time and effort to the task of informing policy makers and the larger public on important scientific matters. Francis J. Ryan was the first working scientist whom Lederberg had met, and he introduced Lederberg to experimentation in biochemical genetics, taking him on as a protege and part-time laboratory helper. Lederberg joined the faculty of genetics at the University of Wisconsin in Madison as an assistant professor in the fall of 1947. Josh was sympathetic to the application of Norton Zinder for graduate study in genetics, both because Zinder had unsuccessfully aspired to enter medical school and because he had been recommended by Ryan. Lederberg has been most deeply involved in public policy debates regarding national security and national defense, disarmament, and preparedness.
