I've read E.O. Wilson's books and have always admired him and his work. R.I.P.

 

From Frans de Waal's public page on Facebook:

RIP E.O. Wilson

Prof. Edward O. Wilson, one of the most distinguished and recognized American scientists in modern history, died on December 26th in Burlington, Massachusetts. He was 92.

Wilson was an inspiration to all naturalists in the world, moving easily from his deep knowledge of ants and their societies to the general synthesizing of scientific ideas and being a pioneer in the field of biodiversity and conservation.

He wrote like a poet and was awarded two Pulitzers for his books.

I've met him on multiple occasions, and he was always gracious and humble even though he was certainly no pushover and would object vigorously to ideas he didn't agree with. His own ideas met with public resistance, especially in the 1970s, and he seemed to enjoy the fight.

We've lost a giant!

Carl Zimmer wrote a nice obituary for the NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/.../27/science/eo-wilson-dead.html

See also:

https://eowilsonfoundation.org/e-o-wilson-darwins.../