Photo: HHMI / CC BY-SA 3.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
James J. Collins is a physicist and university teacher, born on June 26, 1965 in New York City, New York, United States. As of 2026, James J. Collins is 61 years old. Education on record includes Bishop Guertin High School and College of the Holy Cross. Listed accolades include MacArthur Fellows Program (2003), Rhodes Scholarship (1987), honorary member and 5 more.
My Take
James Collins fascinates me because he is a boundary-crosser, a physicist who helped invent synthetic biology by treating cells like programmable circuits. That audacious leap, applying engineering logic to living systems, is the kind of lateral thinking that births entirely new fields. The real proof of his impact lies downstream, in how his synthetic gene networks shaped detection and treatment work for Ebola, Zika, and SARS-CoV-2. A Rhodes Scholar and MacArthur Fellow with the Max Delbruck Prize to match, he clearly has the credentials, but what I value is the imagination behind them. People who refuse to stay in one discipline tend to see the world differently.
This take was written by generative AI, one per person, from publicly reported facts (editorial policy). It is a reading of the record, not reporting.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- James J. Collins
- Name (Japanese)
- ジェームズ・J・コリンズ
- Reading
- じぇーむず・J・こりんず
- Born
- June 26, 1965 (age 61)
- Origin
- New York City, New York, United States
- Occupation
- physicist / university teacher
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Cancer / Snake
2. Background
- High school
- Bishop Guertin High School
- University
- College of the Holy Cross
Awards & achievements
- 2003 MacArthur Fellows Program
- 1987 Rhodes Scholarship
- honorary member
- 1999 Fellow of the American Physical Society
- Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
- 2019 Pierre Galletti Award
- 2020 Max Delbrück Prize in Biological Physics
- 2007 National Institutes of Health Director's Pioneer Award
3. Links
- Official sitehttps://www.collinslab.mit.edu/
- Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James%20J.%20Collins
- Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B8%E3%82%A7%E3%83%BC%E3%83%A0%E3%82%BA%E3%83%BBJ%E3%83%BB%E3%82%B3%E3%83%AA%E3%83%B3%E3%82%BA
- Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6131576
4. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.
Frequently asked questions
When was James J. Collins born?
Born June 26, 1965 (age 61).
Where is James J. Collins from?
James J. Collins is from New York City, New York, United States.
What does James J. Collins do?
James J. Collins works as physicist, university teacher.
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