Introduction to the special issue in honor of the contributions of Lynn Margulis (1938-2011) Lynn Margulis: a 20th-Century scientist and a visionary of biology

Abstract

Lynn Margulis' vision for her field was far ahead of its time, as has been the case for so many 'prophets' in science. For example, the theory of heliocentrism, first formulated by Copernicus in 1543, was not widely accepted. The proof of this concept occurred some 60 + years later with Galileo’s development and application of the telescope, a breakthrough that brought him condemnation and house arrest by the Church. Similarly, in 1905, the Russian botanist Konstantin Mereschkowski posited the theory of the formation of the eukaryotic cell by endosymbiosis. However, it was not until 60 + years later, using the newly available technology of the electron microscope, that Lynn Margulis provided the first proof of this concept. The idea was so revolutionary in science that reviewers rejected her manuscript for publication in more than a dozen scientific journals before it was published in 1967 by the Journal of Theoretical Biology.