Kary Banks Mullis(December 28, 1944 – August 7, 2019) was an Americanbiochemist. In recognition of his role in the invention of thepolymerase chain reaction(PCR) technique, he shared the 1993Nobel Prize in ChemistrywithMichael Smithand was awarded theJapan Prizein the same year. PCR became a central technique inbiochemistryandmolecular biology, described byThe New York Timesas "highly original and significant, virtually dividing biology into the two epochs of before PCR and after PCR." Mullisdownplayed humans' role in climate change, expresseddoubt that HIV is the cause of AIDS,and professed a belief inastrologyand theparanormal.He also practicedclandestine chemistryby producingLSD. Mullis's unscientific statements about topics outside his area of expertise have been named bySkeptical Inquireras an instance of "Nobel disease". Fields: Molecular biology Education: Georgia Institute of Technology BS University of California, Berkeley PhD