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    Bob Loomis

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    Robert Simpson Loomis was an influential American agronomist and crop physiologist. He spent his career at the University of California, Davis where he taught and conducted research. Loomis made significant contributions to understanding the physiology of plant growth, development, and responses to the environment. He published over 140 papers and books, including the influential text "Crop Ecology." Loomis trained many graduate students and visiting scientists and served in editorial roles that helped establish Field Crops Research as an important journal. He had a significant global impact and is remembered for his research, teaching, and mentorship.

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    Bob Loomis

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    papinto
    685 views2 pages
    Robert Simpson Loomis was an influential American agronomist and crop physiologist. He spent his career at the University of California, Davis where he taught and conducted research. Loomis made significant contributions to understanding the physiology of plant growth, development, and responses to the environment. He published over 140 papers and books, including the influential text "Crop Ecology." Loomis trained many graduate students and visiting scientists and served in editorial roles that helped establish Field Crops Research as an important journal. He had a significant global impact and is remembered for his research, teaching, and mentorship.

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    Fiel Crops Research Obituary

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    Robert Simpson Loomis was an influential American agronomist and crop physiologist. He spent his career at the University of California, Davis where he taught and conducted research. Loomis made significant contributions to understanding the physiology of plant growth, development, and responses to the environment. He published over 140 papers and books, including the influential text "Crop Ecology." Loomis trained many graduate students and visiting scientists and served in editorial roles that helped establish Field Crops Research as an important journal. He had a significant global impact and is remembered for his research, teaching, and mentorship.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    685 views2 pages

    Bob Loomis

    Uploaded by

    papinto
    Robert Simpson Loomis was an influential American agronomist and crop physiologist. He spent his career at the University of California, Davis where he taught and conducted research. Loomis made significant contributions to understanding the physiology of plant growth, development, and responses to the environment. He published over 140 papers and books, including the influential text "Crop Ecology." Loomis trained many graduate students and visiting scientists and served in editorial roles that helped establish Field Crops Research as an important journal. He had a significant global impact and is remembered for his research, teaching, and mentorship.

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    of 2

    Field Crops Research 178 (2015) 135136

    Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

    Field Crops Research


    journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/fcr

    Obituary

    Robert Simpson Loomis (11 October 192827 March 2015)

    Bob Loomis was born in Ames, IA, where he completed undergraduate studies in Physics at Iowa State University in 1949
    followed by an MSc in Botany at The University of Wisconsin in
    1951 for work on the quantum efciency of photosynthesis. Then,
    following service in the Air Force engaged in atmospheric research
    at the A.F. Cambridge Research Centre, and after a spell on his wifes
    family farm, he returned to The University of Wisconsin for PhD
    studies. He completed these in 1956 with a thesis on corn borer
    resistance in which he identied the major role that the powerful
    antibiotic DIMBOA (a naturally occurring benzoxazinoid) plays in
    insect and disease resistance.
    This diverse experience and his sharp analytical mind equipped
    him for a post of Sugar Beet Agronomist in 1956 in the Department
    of Agronomy and Range Science in the newly developing campus of
    the University of California at Davis. He spent his entire academic
    career there up to formal retirement in 1991, but maintained his
    academic activities afterwards. His major commitment at Davis was
    to teaching and research but he was also well involved in the university community. Among his many roles were service as faculty
    athletic representative and Chair of Intercollegiate Athletic Board,
    rst Director of the Institute of Environmental Studies, member of
    the policy committee of the University of California-University of
    Chile Convenio and representative to the Universitywide Assembly
    of the Academic Senate.
    His early work on sugar beet emphasized the physiology of
    nutrient and water stress on photosynthesis while later he turned
    to studies of the controls of growth and development of leaves
    and roots. As a fellow at Harvard University with J.G. Torrey in
    196364 he elucidated hormonal controls over cambial activity in
    radish. In 1962 he began a long and productive relationship with Bill
    Williams, a departmental colleague, on studies of the structure and
    photosynthesis of foliage canopies. With graduate students and visiting scientists, he extended these modeling activities to integrative
    physiology, biomass partitioning, bioclimatology, ideotype identication, N assimilation and host pathogen relationships using sugar
    beet, potato, alfalfa and wheat crops. During these years he taught a
    0378-4290/$ see front matter
    http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fcr.2015.04.020

    popular course in crop ecology and was a highly effective mentor to


    29 MSc and PhD students and 25 visiting scientists. He also joined
    the Alpha-Helix scientic expedition to the Amazon and held visiting appointments at Harvard University, New Zealand Scientic
    and Industrial Research Council (Palmerston North), Wageningen
    Agricultural University (The Netherlands) and The University of
    Melbourne (Australia).
    Davis was a focal point for establishment of new concepts in
    agronomy and was attractive to students from around the world.
    Bob Loomis was a part of that attraction and, with excellent attention to selection of projects and mentoring of experimental design
    and clear expression of results and conclusions, contributed greatly
    to a cadre of successful graduate students distributed around the
    globe. He became a world leader in his discipline areas, and with
    travel and interchanges, maintained contact with many contemporary colleagues who also rank as giants in his and closely related
    elds. These include Ed Lemon, Champ Tanner and Paul Waggoner
    (USA); Fred Milthorpe, John Monteith and Ian Cowan (UK); Lloyd
    Evans, John Phillip and Ralph Slatyer (Australia); Kees (C.T.) de
    Witt and Herman van Keulen (The Netherlands). Many plant physiologists and agronomists from around the world visited Davis
    to meet Bob Loomis and many of those would also enjoy hospitality at his home adjacent to the campus, just across Russell
    Blvd.
    Bob Loomis was well known nationally and internationally. He
    was chair of the western Section and secretary in the American
    Society of Plant Physiologists. He served on various committees of
    ASA and CSSA and as editor of Crop Science, Advances in Bioclimatology and Field Crops Research. He was an elected fellow of ASA,
    CSSA and AAAS. Bob also had a wide impact internationally with
    his study leave in various institutions, other visits and presentations at International Conferences. His presence will be maintained
    in the literature where he has 140 papers and three books, including the signicant text Crop Ecology: Productivity and Management
    in Agricultural Systems published by Cambridge University Press
    in 1992, with translations in Japanese, Spanish and Chinese. A second edition was published in 2011. The wide audience of readers
    of Field Crops Research will recognize his name and those of his collaborators in key papers and books from the literature. Some will
    remember Bobs careful and helpful advice with papers submitted
    to Field Crops Research while he was Editor-in-Chief (19931998).
    All readers can be assured that Bob Loomis made an enormous contribution to focus and quality of the Journal during its formative
    years and in that way to the continuing success that it now enjoys.
    I join many colleagues within the Readership and Editorial Board
    of Field Crops Research in paying tribute to his great contribution

    136

    Obituary / Field Crops Research 178 (2015) 135136

    to education and research in crop physiology and agronomy and to


    the publication of quality international research on eld crops.
    Bobs wife of 58 years, Ann, died in 2010. They are survived by
    three daughters and four grandsons.
    The Loomis family has established a memorial, The Robert S. and
    Lois Ann Loomis Graduate Award in Agronomy. Contributions

    payable to UC Davis Foundation can be mailed to Janet Berry,


    UC Davis Conference Center, 2nd oor, One Shields Ave, Davis,
    CA 95616, USA.
    David J. Connor

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