Honoring Andrew Benson in Paris

Andrew A. Benson was honored on his 90th birthday (September 24, 2007) with a Special Issue of Photosynthesis Research that contained invited articles by his friends and scientific collaborators, and it was edited by the three of us (Vol. 92, No. 2, pp. 143-271). One of us (RD) learned that Andy, his postdoctoral mentor, planned to visit Paris after his 90th birthday to see his long-time friend, Professor Gerard Milhaud. Andy and Gerard had worked together in Melvin Calvin's photosynthesis laboratory in 1952-1953 and have since maintained their friendship. We, the three authors of this Report, thought that this was the right occasion to present Andy the Special Issue of Photosynthesis Research. Accordingly, RD organized a dinner both to commemorate the event and to celebrate Andy's birthday. This elegant dinner was held on October 20, 2007 in Paris at the historic Restaurant Le Procope. All guests managed to attend despite a train strike that crippled Paris and the rest of France.