Rambling and Scrambling in Bacterial Transformation— a Historical and Personal Memoir

In these retrospective comments I hope to accomplish several objectives. I shall briefly review the early history of bacterial transformation, with an emphasis on breakthroughs and personalities. Then, I shall describe my own role in the development of the field with its curious dependence on the interplay of rational experimentation and serendipity. In this context, I shall discuss the importance of mentoring, cooperation, chance, and revelation. My title refers to my good fortune in having support that enabled me to ramble over various aspects of transformation, although from time to time I was obliged to scramble to obtain grant funding, to produce publications, and to generally compete in the field. To achieve within these few pages the multiple objectives mentioned above, I shall be rambling and scrambling once again.