Perspectives in Biophysical Plant Ecophysiology: A Tribute to Park S. Nobel

Abstract

Park S. Nobel (Distinguished Professor Emeritus, University of California, Los Angeles) pioneered the coupling of cellular physical chemistry with plant physiology, providing a sound physicochemical interpretation of the laws of diffusion to a rapidly expanding field of plant physiological ecology. For the first time, the commonly applied Fick's and Ohm's Laws could be explained on a thermodynamic basis with exceptional clarity and a strong analytical approach. His classical textbook is the only one of its kind to provide an extensive array of quantitative problems and solutions in the field of plant biophysics and ecophysiology, extending from the molecular to the ecological level. Accompanying Park's production of such a prestigious textbook are an extraordinary number of refereed publications and four other books on desert plant ecophysiology. In this festschrift, former graduate students and postdocs, as well as colleagues of Prof. Nobel present a series of reviews that include scales from sub-cellular to global, and topics that range from desert succulent biology to the physiology of alpine plants, encompassing basic research and applications in agronomy and conservation biology. This state-of-the-field survey provides current and useful information for professionals and graduate students searching for research topics, while illustrating the broad span of the influence that Nobel's career has had on modern ecophysiology. Erick De la Barrera was Park's last graduate student and is now a Research Professor at Centro de Investigaciones en Ecosistemas, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. William K. Smith was Park's first Ph. D. student after his conversion to the field of plant ecophysiology from cellular biophysics. He is now the Charles H. Babcock Chaired Professor in Biology at Wake Forest University.