Masakazu "Mark" Konishi was a Japanese neurobiologist, known for his research on the neuroscience underlying the behavior of owls and songbirds.
15 Facts About Masakazu Konishi
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Masakazu Konishi first studied at Hokkaido University, where he completed his Bachelor of Science in 1956 and Master of Science in 1958.
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Masakazu Konishi initially planned to study agriculture, but changed his mind upon seeing the zoology subjects on offer.
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Masakazu Konishi received a Fulbright travel scholarship to move to the United States for his doctoral research.
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Masakazu Konishi's findings highlighted the important role of auditory feedback in songbird vocal learning, using white-crowned sparrows and other songbird species.
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Masakazu Konishi then returned to the United States, working at the University of Wisconsin and later at Princeton University.
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Masakazu Konishi investigated the development of hearing in duck embryos.
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Masakazu Konishi was a Professor of Biology at California Institute of Technology from 1975 to 1980, and served as Bing Professor from 1980 until his retirement in 2013.
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Masakazu Konishi was a leader in the field of avian neuroethology and a foremost expert in avian auditory systems.
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Masakazu Konishi was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Sciences.
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Masakazu Konishi was a founding member of the International Society for Neuroethology, and served as the society's second President from 1986 to 1989.
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In 1990, Masakazu Konishi received the International Prize for Biology, which was established to honour Hirohito, the Showa Emperor of Japan.
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Several years later, the imperial couple invited Masakazu Konishi to dine at their palace.
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The couple did not say a word about the Japanese food he had chosen during the meal; nevertheless, Masakazu Konishi found the Empress particularly "charming" and, later, sent her a reel of tape containing the song of European nightingales.
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Masakazu Konishi retired from his position at Caltech in 2013, and died of natural causes at his home in San Diego, California on 23 July 2020, at the age of 87.