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Ben Barres, 1954-2017


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2017 Dec 28, 10:06pm   2,827 views  2 comments

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"Acclaimed Stanford neuroscientist Ben Barres, MD, PhD, died on Dec. 27, 20 months after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He was 63.

Barres’ path-breaking discoveries of the crucial roles played by glial cells — the unsung majority of brain cells, which aren’t nerve cells — revolutionized the field of neuroscience.

Barres was incontestably visionary yet, ironically, face-blind — he suffered from prosopagnosia, an inability to distinguish faces, and relied on voices or visual cues such as hats and hairstyles to identify even people he knew well.
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A professor of neurobiology, of developmental biology and of neurology, Barres was widely praised as a stellar and passionate scientist whose methodologic rigor was matched only by his energy and enthusiasm. He was devoted to his scholarly pursuits and to his trainees, advocating unrelentingly on their behalf. He especially championed the cause of women in academia, with whom he empathized; he was transgender.
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Barres spent his last days and final hours making sure that the letters of recommendation he had written for others were ready. “In what time remains to me that will be my highest priority,” he assured trainees in a letter he sent to them in early November.

Over the course of his career, Barres’ published 167 peer-reviewed papers, organized and chaired numerous meetings, won many awards and served on the editorial boards of Science, Neuron, the Journal of Neuroscience, the Journal of Cell Biology, Glia, Current Biology and more. He was elected to membership in the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Medicine.
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#Science

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1   NoYes   2017 Dec 28, 10:19pm  

Say What?
2   curious2   2017 Dec 29, 12:07am  

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