Maurice Galante Lectures: 1994-2015

The Maurice Galante Lecture honors the late Maurice Galante, M.D., UCSF Professor Emeritus of Surgery. A native of the island of Rhodes when it was considered part of Italy, Dr. Galante was educated in the United States, receiving his MD with honors from The Ohio State University in 1944. He interned for one year at the Morrisania City Hospital in New York before moving to San Francisco to begin his residency in general surgery.

Dr. Galante completed his residency training in 1952 after an interruption of several years for Army service in the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. 

Dr. Galante has been described as "one of the last of a generation of real general surgeons"- those surgeons who bring the same superb technical expertise to a wide variety of surgical procedures. Maurice Galante also brought a rare humanism to his 50 years as a surgeon at the UCSF School of Medicine. The scores of residents he trained were the fortunate recipients of a course in medical ethics and surgical attitude while learning surgical skills from a master.

Dr. Galante developed a special relationship with his patients because of his sensitivity to their pain and suffering. Many of these patients have expressed their gratitude through donations to support various programs in the Department of Surgery, including this annual lecture and the Maurice Galante Distinguished Professorship. 

In addition to the numerous educational awards that Maurice has been honored with over the years, on May 28, 1985, he was decorated as "Commendatore nell'Ordine Al Merito della Repubblica Italiana" by the Consul General of Italy. This highly distinguished award is given to select individuals for contributions in the fields of literature, the economy, public service, and social, philanthropic and humanitarian activities.

Past Maurice Galante Lecturers

Eighteenth Maurice Galante Lecture
Reza Aslan
“Beyond Fundamentalism: Confronting Radical Religion at Home and Abroad”
Thursday, April 9, 2015

Seventeenth Maurice Galante Lecture
Alice Waters
“The Art of Simple Food”
Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Sixteenth Maurice Galante Lecture
Malcolm Gladwell
“Perspectives”
Friday, February 22, 2013

Fifteenth Maurice Galante Lecture
Neal Benezra
“Looking Forward”
Friday, February 10, 2012

Fourteenth Maurice Galante Lecture
Ralph Langner
“Cyber Warfare”
Friday, May 6, 2011

Thirteenth Maurice Galante Lecture
Michael Pollan
“Eat Food. Not too much, Mostly plants.”
Thursday, March 25, 2010

Twelfth Maurice Galante Lecture
Tim Weiner
“Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA”
Friday, October 24, 2008

Eleventh Maurice Galante Lecture
Kai Bird and Martin J. Sherwin
“Oppenheimer’s Shadow: His Nuclear World and Ours”
Friday, November 3, 2006

Tenth Maurice Galante Lecture
Sarah Blaffer Hrdy, PhD
“Maternal Love and Ambivalence in the Pleistocene, the 18th century and Today”
Monday, January 24, 2005

Ninth Maurice Galante Lecture
Simon Singh, PhD
“Cracking the Cipher Challenge”
Thursday, October 2, 2003

Eight Maurice Galante Lecture
Saul Perlmutter, PhD
“Supernovas, Dark Energy, and the Accelerating Universe…who’s next?”
Thursday, January 24, 2002

Seventh Maurice Galante Lecture
Walter Pitman III, PhD
“Noah’s Flood: The Science Behind the Myth”
Tuesday, March 6, 2001

Sixth Maurice Galante Lecture
Jared M. Diamond, PhD
“The Lethal Gift of Livestock: Evolutionary history of Epidemic Diseases”
Tuesday, February 15, 2000

Fifth Maurice Galante Lecture
Francis S. Collins, M.D., Ph.D.
“Contemplating the Completion of the Human Genome Sequence”
Monday, October 19, 1998

Fourth Maurice Galante Lecture
Christine K. Cassel, MD, F.A.C.P.
“Care for the Dying Patient: A New Frontier for Medicine”
Friday, November 14, 1997

Third Maurice Galante Lecture
Andrew L. Warshaw MD
“Acute Pancreatitis: Bench to Bedside”
Wednesday, November 20, 1996

Second Maurice Galante Lecture
Tom R. DeMeester, MD
“Pitfalls in Surgical Therapy for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease”
Wednesday, November 29, 1995

First Maurice Galante Lecture
Carlos A. Pellegrini, MD
“Health Care Reform and the Academic Department of Surgery: A Strategy for Survival”
November 9-10, 1994