Mary Ellen Avery (May 6, 1927 – December 4, 2011) was an American pediatrician. In the 1950s, Dr. Avery's pioneering research efforts helped lead to the discovery of the main cause of respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) in premature babies: her identification of surfactant led to the development of replacement therapy for premature infants and has been credited with saving over 830,000 lives. In 1991 President George Bush conferred the National Medal of Science on Dr. Avery for her work on RDS.
Read more about Mary Ellen Avery: Biography, Awards and Honors
Famous quotes containing the words mary, ellen and/or avery:
“Mary had a little lamb,
Its fleece was white as snow,
And every where that Mary went
The lamb was sure to go;
He followed her to school one day—
That was against the rule,
It made the children laugh and play,
To see a lamb at school.”
—Sarah Josepha Buell Hale (1788–1879)
“The cultivation of one set of faculties tends to the disuse of others. The loss of one faculty sharpens others; the blind are sensitive in touch. Has not the extreme cultivation of the commercial faculty permitted others as essential to national life, to be blighted by disease?”
—J. Ellen Foster (1840–1910)
“Eh, what’s up Doc?”
—Tex Avery [Fred Avery] (1907–1980)