Paul, Gordon L.

My parents lived on an Iowa farm at the time of my birth, September 2, 1935. I was born in nearby Marshalltown, where I grew up following our loss of the farm in 1939. I was the only surviving child of Leon D. Paul and Ione Hickman (Perry), but a large extended family of cousins, aunts, uncles, and maternal grandparents were major influences as well. Nonacademic life, choices based on irrelevant factors, and chance events have all contributed to my intellectual approach, accomplishments, and ultimate status as a research scientist, teacher, and clinician.

Nobody had much money during my formative years. I was the first to graduate college. My father ended schooling in the sixth grade. He toiled as a factory worker until his ...