John H. Postlethwait is professor of Biology at the University of Oregon where he has taught general biology for 29 years, to both biology majors and non-majors, as well as upper division courses in embryology and genetics. His research on the genetic mechanisms of embryonic development and the origin of vertebrate genomes is supported by the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation. For three one-year periods, Dr. Postlethwait conducted research supported by Fullbright grants at the Institute f�r Molekular Biologie in Salzburg, Austria, the Laboratoire de Genetique Moleculaire des Eucaryotes in Strasbourg, France, and the Imperial Cancer Research Fund in Oxford,… England. A recipient of the Ersted Distinguished Teaching Award, Dr. Postlethwait encourages active participation of undergraduates in research and many of his publications include undergraduate students as coauthors. His love of teaching stems from his undergraduate days at Purdue University, where for three years he was a teaching assistant in General Biology.