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Laurence K. Cutkomp |
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Laurence K. Cutkomp
Professor Emeritus |
Dr. Laurence Kremer Cutkomp, Professor Emeritus of Entomology, University of Minnesota, passed away peacefully after a brief illness on February 20, 2006, surrounded by his family members at the Regions Hospital in St. Paul. He was 90 years old.
Dr. Cutkomp was born on January 24, 1916, in Wapello, Iowa. He received his B.A. in biology from Iowa Wesleyan College in 1936. After working for a year as a laboratory assistant in zoology at University of Cincinnati, Dr. Cutkomp moved back to Iowa to work for USDA on management of grasshoppers until 1939. Dr. Cutkomp received his Ph.D. in entomology from Cornell University in 1942 with specialization in insect toxicology, economic entomology, and ornithology. Before joining the entomology department at University of Minnesota as an assistant professor in 1947, Dr. Cutkomp served as a research fellow at University of Pennsylvania, research associate at University of Minnesota, and as an associate entomologist for the Tennessee Valley Authority doing mosquito control work. He was promoted to an associate professor in 1953 and attained the rank of professor in 1960. He retired from the University of Minnesota in 1986.
Dr. Cutkomp taught undergraduate and graduate courses and conducted research for more than 40 years at the University of Minnesota, and trained 16 master’s and 13 Ph.D. students. He taught courses in Economic Entomology, House and Garden Insects, Principles of Economic Entomology, Insect Toxicology, and Insecticides and Their Action. He authored or co-authored more than 90 extension and popular articles on economic insects, both injurious and beneficial. However, he is recognized internationally for his research on the inhibition of insect, fish, and mice adenosine triphosphatases (ATPases) by various insecticides, especially chlorinated hydrocarbons and circadian rhythms in sensitivity of insects exposed to insecticides. In addition to these areas, Dr. Cutkomp conducted research on temperature-toxicity relationships of synthetic pyrethroids, sterilization of fruit flies, aerial application of insecticides, and chemical management of stored-product insects. In all, he published more than 100 research papers. Dr. Cutkomp co-authored a Glossary of Pesticide Toxicology and Related Terms in 1984 with N. Eesa, his former Ph.D. student (Thomson Publications), and the second edition was published in 1994. Two of his books include How to Know the Immature Insects with H. F. Chu, published in 1992 (W. C. Brown Publishing), and Senses and Moves in Insects, a book for high school students, published in 2005 by Xlibris.
Dr. Cutkomp traveled internationally on behalf of the Food and Agriculture Organization, World Health Organization, and the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna, Austria. Some of the countries he visited were Egypt, Israel, Lebanon, Tanzania, India, Pakistan, China, Italy, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Poland, Greece, Germany, Panama, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Honduras, Korea, Japan, Philippines, and Thailand.
Dr. Cutkomp was a soft spoken and caring person. He kept physically fit by walking every day, playing handball, cross-country skiing, biking, bowling, and swimming.
Dr. Cutkomp is survived by his wife, Ethel B. Longley of St. Paul, daughters Kay (Dave) Bahan of Mechanicville, New York, Terry (Esi) Ostovar of Asheville, North Carolina, and Lee (Dan) Ross of Hovland, Minnesota, and son Kent (Deb) Cutkomp of Minneapolis, grandchildren Andrew Cutkomp, Kayhan and Payam Ostovar, Naseem Ostovar (Gideon) Alston, and great grandchildren Braden and Whalen Alston.
A memorial service was held on April 29, 2006 at Unity Church in St. Paul, Minnesota.
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