1. Michael Spencer Waterman was born on June 28,1942 and is a Professor of Biology, Mathematics and Computer Science at the University of Southern California, where he holds an Endowed Associates Chair in Biological Sciences, Mathematics and Computer Science.
Michael Waterman previously held positions at Los Alamos National Laboratory and Idaho State University.
Michael Waterman is one of the founders and current leaders in the area of computational biology.
Michael Waterman focuses on applying mathematics, statistics, and computer science techniques to various problems in molecular biology.
Michael Waterman's work has contributed to some of the most widely used tools in the field.
Michael Waterman authored one of the earliest textbooks in the field: Introduction to Computational Biology.
Michael Waterman was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Tel Aviv University in 2011, an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Southern Denmark in 2013, and an Honorary Doctorate from Oregon State University in 2024.
Michael Waterman has been a member of the US American Academy of Arts and Sciences since 1995, a member of the US National Academy of Engineering since 2012, a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences since 2013, and a member of the US National Academy of Sciences since 2001.
Michael Waterman has been an academician of the French Academy of Sciences since 2005.
Michael Waterman was elected an ISCB Fellow in 2009 by the International Society for Computational Biology and was awarded their ISCB Senior Scientist Award in 2009.
Michael Waterman has written a memoir, Getting Outside, of a childhood spent on an isolated livestock ranch on the southern coast of Oregon in the mid-20th century.