Edinburgh Medal to Carl Djerassi

Carl Djerassi, emeritus professor of chemistry at Stanford University, has been awarded the prestigious Edinburgh Medal. Given annually during the Edinburgh International Science Festival, the medal honors men and women in science and technology who have made outstanding contributions to the understanding of ­humanity.

Djerassi, who is often referred to as “the father of the Pill,” is renowned for his breakthrough work on the synthesis of the progestin norethindrone, which formed the basis of the first oral contraceptive. This work revolutionized women’s birth control options.

Djerassi has received numerous honors for his research, including the National Medal of Science, the National Medal of Technology, the American Chemical Society Priestley Medal, the Wolf Foundation Prize in Chemistry, the Award for the Industrial Application of Science from the National Academy of Sciences, the Erasmus Medal of the Academia Europeae, the Perkin Medal of the Society for Chemical Industry, and the Gold Medal Award of the American Institute of Chemists.

Since the late 1980s, Djerassi has also been prolific in the literary world, producing novels, poetry, and plays, many of them based on scientific themes. He is founder of the Djerassi Resident Artists Program near Woodside, Calif., which provides residencies and studio space for artists in the visual arts, literature, choreography and performing arts, and music.

Djerassi will present his medal address titled “Science, Sex & Theatre: A Potent Brew” during the science festival, which will be held on April 9–22.