Person

Ratkowsky, David Allen (1935 - 2025)

Born
26 April 1935
Brooklyn, New York, U.S.A.
Died
13 April 2025
Hobart, Tasmania, Australia
Occupation
Microbiologist, Mycologist and Statistician

Summary

David Ratkowksy was a statistician recognised internationally for his work in predictive microbiology. He applied chemical kinetics to bacterial growth and discovered that there is a relationship between temperature and the square root of the growth rate. His seminal book Nonlinear regression modelling (1983) established the methodological foundations for quantitative biology. The Ratkowsky model (known as the square root bacterial growth model) became the gold standard in food safety and climate impact studies. Ratkowsky was keen member of the Tasmanian Field Naturalists Club, being President in 1987 and later a Life Member. With fellow naturalist Genevieve Gates, he made innumerable field trips in pursuit of their shared interest in mapping and conserving Tasmanian fungi. Their publications include A field guide to Tasmanian fungi (2014) and FungiFlip (2015), an all-weather, portable guide to the state's fungi.

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Details

Chronology

1984 - 1987
Career position - Editor, The Tasmanian naturalist
1987
Career position - President, Tasmanian Field Naturalists Club
2016 - 2025
Award - Life Member, Tasmanian Field Naturalists Club

Related Corporate Bodies

Published resources

Books

  • Gates, Genevieve and Ratkowsky, David, A field guide to Tasmanian fungi (Hobart: Tasmanian Field Naturalists Club, 2014), 249 pp. Details
  • Gates, Genevieve, Ratkowsky, David and Wiltshire, Rob, FungiFlip: a pictorial guide to Tasmanian fungi (Hobart: School of biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, 2015). Details
  • Ratkowsky, David A., Nonlinear regression models: a unified practical approach (New York: Dekker, 1983), 288 pp. Details

Journal Articles

  • Di Tang, Quinn, Brady K., Yunfeng Yang, Liang Guo, Ratkowsky, David A. and Peijian Shi, 'Fall and winter temperatures, together with spring temperatures, determine the first flowering date of Prunus armeniaca L.', Plants, 14 (10(1503)) (2025), 1-20, https://doi.org/10.3390/plants14101503. Details
  • Ellis, R.C.; Ratkowsky, D.A.; Mattay, J.P.; and Rout, A.F., 'Growth of Eucalyptus delegatensis following partial harvesting of multi-aged stands.', Australian Forestry, 50 (2) (1987), 95-105. Details
  • Ratkowsky, D. A., 'A Little-known Scientific Club in Hobart, Tasmania - its Early Years', Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania, 144 (2010), 37-42. Details
  • Ratkowsky, David; and Ross, Tom, 'Tom McMeekin: a pioneer in "predictive food microbiology" and Antarctic microbial ecology', Microbiology Australia, 42 (4) (2021), 196. https://doi.org/10.1071/MA21054. Details

Resources

See also

Rosanne Walker and Helen Cohn

Created: 25 May 2001, Last modified: 15 October 2026

EOAS ID: biogs/P003881b.htm

This Edition: 2026 August - Bibliographies
Larneuk - Gariwerd calendar - Pre-spring: late July to August - season of nesting birds
Reference: https://www.bom.gov.au/resources/indigenous-weather-knowledge/indigenous-seasonal-calendars/gariwerd-calendar#bom-anchor-list__item-larneuk-season-of-nesting-birds

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