225 years of Tar Heels: Oliver Smithies

Posted Nov 8, 2018
When world-renowned geneticist Oliver Smithies got the call that he had won a Nobel Prize at age 82, his first reaction was joy. His second was to hope that the award would not change his life too much. “I rather enjoy it as it is,” he said the day his award was announced. Before his passing in January 2017, Smithies was known to say that his lab at Carolina was his home. (UNC.edu)

Related: Campus Connections

UNC alum, former Tar Heels soccer player Jenny Chiu hosts FIFA World Cup TV series
Jenny Chiu ’17 always aimed to become a soccer star. And she has — just not in the way she imagined. As 48 countries compete...
Sat Jun 27, 2026

UNC Connections to the Stanley Cup Champion Carolina Hurricanes
Mike Sundheim has been with the Carolina Hurricanes in some capacity for 28 years. Sundheim graduated from UNC in 2000, meaning he started with the...
Thu Jun 25, 2026

Take a closer look at South Building’s new copper roof
The weathervane at the top of South Building hasn’t been the highest point on campus in nearly a century, but for now, anyway, it is...
Wed Jun 24, 2026

UNC ranked No. 55 among universities across the world
The University of North Carolina is the 55th best school in the world, according to U.S. News. Carolina’s best subject areas, according to the rankings,...
Tue Jun 23, 2026