茄子直播

In 2013, William Paul (front, second from right) with son Marden Paul (far left) and daughter Lissa Paul (far right) participated in the Convocation of Lissa' son Jeremy

In Memoriam: Biophysics pioneer William Paul

A scientist and University of Toronto Professor Emeritus who helped establish the field of nuclear medicine in Canada, has died. He was 96.

William Paul helped set up and run the first medical isotopes lab in Toronto. He trained generations of medical researchers in the safe use of radioactive materials for medical diagnoses, as a professor in Pathological Chemistry and Clinical Biochemistry and as a founding member of the University鈥檚 Radiation Protection Authority.

Paul also did groundbreaking research on the use of radioactive iodine for thyroid disorders.

鈥淒r. Paul was a founder of the field of biophysics, and he played a key role in the development of nuclear medicine in Toronto. He also served as an administrative leader at the University. On behalf of the Faculty, I would like to offer my deepest condolences to Dr. Paul鈥檚 family,鈥 said Catharine Whiteside, dean of the Faculty of Medicine.

Paul was one of the few graduates in biology and physics at 茄子直播 in the 1940s. He earned a PhD in pharmacology in 1948 and did a postdoctoral fellowship at Cambridge University the following year. He returned to 茄子直播 as a lecturer in pharmacology and in 1953 joined the Department of Pathological Chemistry, where he taught for three decades.

鈥淎s one of the only people in Canada with a specialized knowledge of nuclear physics as it might apply to medical diagnosis, he taught us everything we knew about radioactive materials,鈥 said Andrew Baines, a molecular biochemist and 茄子直播 Professor Emeritus who studied under Paul in the 1950s. 鈥淎nd he helped usher in a new approach to safety in a field where, historically, the handling of radiation had been sloppy.鈥

Paul retired in 1983 but continued to teach for nine more years. In 2007, he wrote a paper on climate change for 茄子直播鈥檚 Senior Scholars Symposium. He also took up boat building in his late 80鈥檚, and built a cedar canoe and a kayak. In 2013, n. Three generations of Pauls have graduated from 茄子直播.

鈥淗e was a thoughtful, gentle, kind man, with a strong intelligence and an inquiring mind,鈥 said Baines. 鈥淎bove all, he was a mensch.鈥

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