Today, Thursday, Aug. 13, would have been a monumental birthday celebration for UC Davis Distinguished Professor Bruce Hammock, an internationally known scholar, researcher, inventor, collaborator, teacher, scientific leader and mentor.
Professor Hammock, who died Jan. 5 in Davis, would have turned 79 today.
Not one to have the life and legacy of Bruce Hammock slide by unnoticed, his longtime friend and colleague UC Davis Distinguished Professor Walter Leal of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology and former chair of the Department of Entomology, created a video, capturing remembrances from some 20 colleagues, friends and mentees, from across the country. He released it this morning.
"The video is a heartfelt tribute to Bruce Hammock, celebrating not only his groundbreaking scientific achievements but also his extraordinary character," said Leal. "Through the reflections of friends, colleagues, and former students, it portrays Bruce as a brilliant yet humble scientist whose generosity, mentorship, humor, and compassion profoundly shaped the lives and careers of those around him, leaving a legacy defined as much by his humanity as by his scientific contributions."
"The world was a better place when Bruce Hammock was in it," Leal said.
Hammock (1947-2026), who held a joint appointment with the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology and the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, joined the UC Davis faculty in 1980. He earlier had served on the UC Riverside faculty. He was renowned for his chemistry, toxicology, biochemistry, entomology and human health research that led to elected membership in the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Inventors; scores of professional honors and awards; and accolades from administrators, colleagues, researchers, alumni and students.
Hammock is globally recognized for co-discovering soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH)--an enzyme in the human body that breaks down regulatory fatty acids--and for his 50-year research on sEH inhibitors that led to therapeutic drug discoveries targeting such diseases as pain, eye and kidney disease, traumatic brain injury and stroke, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer's disease. In 2011, he co-founded EicOsis to fulfill a lifelong commitment to finding safer and more effective ways to treat chronic pain.
"Bruce one of the most remarkable people I have ever known," said UC Davis Distinguished Emeritus Professor and Entomology Department Chair Emeritus Robert E. Page Jr. , whose titles include Arizona State University Provost Emeritus and Regents Professor Emeritus). Page praised Hammock's "passion for science and compassion for the people he mentored or worked for him."
Professor David Karl, University of Hawaii described Hammock as "a giant in science and humanity: humble, visionary, kind, vigorous, helpful, an an intellectual, a scholar second to none."
Professor May Berenbaum of the University of Illinois, editor-in-chief of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, remembers him with "tremendous admiration," and he "was remarkably broadly trained."
UC Davis Distinguished Professor Emeritus (on recall) Frank Zalom said he treasured the notes he received from Hammock. "Whenever I got an award, he would leave me these little notes. They meant so much to me." Zalom read one: "When I think of who has revolutionized California agriculture is the face of UC agriculture international and has served UC well—one name at the top. FRANK. Thanks always, Bruce."
UC Davis Distinguished Professor Emeritus James R. Carey described Hammock in one word: "magnaminous."
In an email to the video participants, Leal wrote: "Your testimonials beautifully capture a few of the many facets of his unique personality, character, and remarkable life. Thank you again for helping us remember and celebrate Bruce on this special day."
The UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences has established an endowment, the Bruce D. Hammock Graduate Research Excellence Award, to honor his four decades of outstanding contributions and service to UC Davis. The endowment will support outstanding Ph.D. students in the college. The donation page is at https://give.ucdavis.edu/CAES/325999
Life and Legacy of Bruce Hammock on Oct. 10
Leal is spearheading the "Life and Legacy of Bruce Hammock," a public celebration set for 1 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 10 in the California Hall, UC Davis campus. Register here: https://forms.gle/eRssVnZyVZBV6is9A.
Tributes:
- Bruce Hammock: 1947-2026, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology
- In Memoriam, Bruce Hammock, UC Academic Senate
- Wikipedia: Bruce Hammock
- "A Quantum Leap at a Time: In Memory of Bruce D. Hammock," by Walter Leal, PNAS publication. (Translated in Russian by Vladimir Burmistrov)
- Biographical Memoir, Bruce Hammock, National Academy of Sciences.
- Tribute to Bruce Hammock, held during the International Meeting on Bioactive Lipids in Health and Disease at Bethesda.
