Kaszab Zoltán (szerk.): A Magyar Természettudományi Múzeum évkönyve 70. (Budapest 1978)

Jánossy, D.: In memoriam Dr. András Tasnádi-Kubacska (1902-1977)

ANNALES HISTORICO-NATURALES MUSEI NATIONALIS HUNGARICI Tomus 70. Budapest 1978 In memóriám Dr. András Tasnádi-Kubacska (1902—1977) by D. JÁNOSSY, Budapest In his person we lost a very diversified and colourful personality, an excellent and dynamic organizer, a well-known expert in his field of science and an ardent popularizer of the natural sciences. After a prolonged illness, nevertheless, still unexpectedly András Tasnádi-Kubacska passed away on the 30th of March, 1977. He was born in 28th of April, 1902, in Budapest. He inherited his interest in natural sciences from his father who, coming from a poor artisan family, fought himself up to be a teacher of natural history. He completed his secondary schools and the university in Budapest and in 1926 he obtained his Ph.D. Already while a student he was an assistant from 1923 in the Department of Anatomy of the Pázmány Péter University, then from 1925 in the Department of Geology in the University of Economy. He joined the staff of the Mineralogical and Palaeontological Department of the Hungarian National Museum in 1932asamuseologist. Following the separation of the Mineralogical and Palaeontological Department in 1941 he was nominated director. Between 1945 and 1950 he was director-general of the Hungarian Natural History Museum, Budapest, and finally he went over in 1950 to be department head in the Museum of the Hungarian Geological Institute where he was active until 1973 when he retired. In 1942 he was presidential councillor in the Hungarian National Museum, between 1945 and 1950 vicepresident of the same, in 1950 he was superintendent of museum collections of natural history on behalf of the National Centre of Museums. In appreciating his official work he was awarded Medal of Merits in Socialist Work in 1956, and Medal in Merits in Socialist Culture in 1966, while in the year of 1969 he received the silver medal of the Order of Labour. In his profession he was extremely versatile as was his activity in science policy and society. While director-general he organized the Biological Institute at Vácrátót, brought into being the Anthrolpological Department and the Biological Laboratory engaged in cell research within the frame of the Hungarian Natural History Museum. He launched a series of monographs of which five volumes appeared, three biographical in nature. In 1943 he organized in the Hungarian Natural History Museum a palaeontological exhibition which was reconed to be the first modern natural history exhibition in our country. The preliminary work of the very successful Africa Exhibition also praises his organizing capacity. For years he was president of the Nature Conservation Council, national delegate of the Society for the Dissemination of Knowledge, and in the latter part of his life until he became severely ill he was active as a member of the editorial boards of the Life and Science ("Elet és Tudomány"), and the Journal for Natural Sciences ("Természettudományi Közlöny"). Besides other similar functions in three cycles (between 1942 and 1946, as well as between 1955 and 1958) he was secretary-general, vice-president and managing president in the Hungarian Geological Society. He was also vice-president of the Society for Natural Sciences.