December 18, 1954

Dr. Maxwell S$. Doty
Chairman, Dept. Biolog
University of Hawaii
Honolulu 14, T.H.

Dear Max:

First, in addition to the best wishes of the season, “sther and
I send our heartfelt condolences for your present position.

As to the job opening(?) about which you wrote, most of my own
contacts are heavily weighted towards research; if the “little” to
which you refer is too little, it might take the intoxicating climate
to attract of keep them there. I take it you would like to find one
person who would be qualified both in genetics ani cryptogamic physio-
loggyeal.

There 1s, in fuct, one person who would fill the bill sc well that,
if I were in your position, I would break a leg to try to get him. Ina
way I'm sorry to recommend him to you, because I would like to see him
settled closer to hand. He is Ralph Lewin (do you know him already?)

At the moment he is at the Maritime Regional Research Laboratory at
Halifax, N.S. Ralph did his Ph.D. at Yale (just after I left there).

He has been working since on Chadamydomonas, and doing a first rate job.
His wife (Joyce) has a similar professional background, is likewise

and excejlent physiologist (diatoms). I 4magine an important consideration
for the Lewins would be whether there are any formal restrictions on her
working (presumably with support from outside research grants}. If this
could be arranged, it might reconcile him to a moderately heavy teaching
load. If you could cozen him into the job, I am sure he would be what

you are looking for.

Another possibility along the same linea is Dr. Ruth Sager, now at
Rockefeller Institute, Her interests are more narrowly on the genetics
of Chlamydomonas, and probably even more research-oriented, but she would
be worth considering.

Let me know what you would havethought about Ralph (especially if you
do know him already); if anything else occurs to me, I'll let you know.
My own students generally do not have the plant-physiclogical background
you are probably looking for, though I have an Australian student (about 2
years to go} who might do eventually.

Yours sincerely,

Joshua Lederberg
Professor of Ger