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2026, Vol: 1, Issue: 1
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Obituary
Online Published: 26 Oct 2026
 


Outwitting the Chronophage: Time, technology and people in the scientific life of Malcolm Ferguson-Smith

Vladimir A. Trifonov.


Abstract
Malcolm Ferguson-Smith (1931–2026) conducted research for nearly seventy years. Some of his most notable work was done after he retired from university leadership at age 67. This article identifies four factors that sustained his long career: a scientific question that had occupied him since 1960; a distinctive chromosome sorting and painting technology; stable funding and academic freedom; and the people he chose to work with. Through the Cambridge Resource Center for Comparative Genomics, researchers from over twenty countries produced more than 650 publications. Together, these conditions transformed his retirement into a second scientific life that lasted more than two decades.

Key words: Malcolm Ferguson-Smith; Comparative cytogenetics; Chromosome painting; Flow sorting; Sex chromosome evolution; Scientific career


 
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Pubmed Style

Vladimir A. Trifonov. Outwitting the Chronophage: Time, technology and people in the scientific life of Malcolm Ferguson-Smith. ChrSomics. 2026; 1(1): 78-88.

Web Style

Vladimir A. Trifonov. Outwitting the Chronophage: Time, technology and people in the scientific life of Malcolm Ferguson-Smith. https://chromosomics.org/?mno=338578 [Access: November 02, 2026].

AMA (American Medical Association) Style

Vladimir A. Trifonov. Outwitting the Chronophage: Time, technology and people in the scientific life of Malcolm Ferguson-Smith. ChrSomics. 2026; 1(1): 78-88.


Vancouver/ICMJE Style

Vladimir A. Trifonov. Outwitting the Chronophage: Time, technology and people in the scientific life of Malcolm Ferguson-Smith. ChrSomics. (2026), [cited November 02, 2026]; 1(1): 78-88.


Harvard Style

Vladimir A. Trifonov (2026) Outwitting the Chronophage: Time, technology and people in the scientific life of Malcolm Ferguson-Smith. ChrSomics, 1 (1), 78-88.


Turabian Style

Vladimir A. Trifonov. 2026. Outwitting the Chronophage: Time, technology and people in the scientific life of Malcolm Ferguson-Smith. ChromoSomics, 1 (1), 78-88.


Chicago Style

Vladimir A. Trifonov. "Outwitting the Chronophage: Time, technology and people in the scientific life of Malcolm Ferguson-Smith." ChromoSomics 1 (2026), 78-88.


MLA (The Modern Language Association) Style

Vladimir A. Trifonov. "Outwitting the Chronophage: Time, technology and people in the scientific life of Malcolm Ferguson-Smith." ChromoSomics 1.1 (2026), 78-88. Print.


APA (American Psychological Association) Style

Vladimir A. Trifonov (2026) Outwitting the Chronophage: Time, technology and people in the scientific life of Malcolm Ferguson-Smith. ChromoSomics, 1 (1), 78-88.



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