American physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2008)
Daniel Carleton Gajdusek
Daniel Carleton Gajdusek was an American physician and medical researcher who was the co-recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1976 for work on the transmissibility of kuru, implying the existence of an infectious agent, which he named an 'unconventional virus'. In 1996, Gajdusek was charged with child molestation and, after being convicted, spent 12 months in prison before entering a self-imposed exile in Europe, where he died a decade later. Despite Gajdusek openly admitting to molesting boys and his approval of incest, he still received support from peers advocating for clemency who felt his crimes were lessened by his scientific contributions.
Born
1923
September 9
Died
Living
Era
1920s
Country
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