Reminiscences about Jack Vallentyne's personal qualities and his contributions to science, human society, and Earth's great community of living things

摘要

J.R. Vallentyne (better known as Jack Vallentyne) was a much valued personal friend and senior professional colleague whose life and works were an inspiration to me. I first met Jack when I was a young scientist at a crossroads in my life's journey, seeking permanent employment after completing a postdoctoral research project. Jack, along with Richard Vollenweider and others, was a member of the selection committee which hired me as a research scientist in the biogeochemistry of inland waters in the Canadian government's Department of the Environment and, as such, played a pivotal part in the progress of my scientific career. Afterwards, however, he mainly stimulated and fostered the artistic side of my life (art being my second calling), whilst linking it to the scientific side, by inducing me to draw a series of satirical cartoons (some of which he published) commenting sharply on environmental issues. Evidently he understood that sardonic humour and vivid concrete images are apt to make a stronger impression on the human mind than facts, reasoning, and abstract concepts! This exemplifies the fact that Jack was not just a scientist: he was also a humanist and Renaissance man and a profound and subtle thinker with a fertile, multidimensional mind. It is the multifaceted quality of his character and its importance in shaping his legacy that I want to emphasize here.