In 1902 Andrew Carnegie, a steel magnate turned philanthropist, had a brilliant idea. Carnegie was prescient in recognizing the important role that science could play in the advancement of humankind. He also believed that the best science came by providing “exceptional” individuals with the resources they need in an environment that is free of needless constraints. He created the Carnegie Institution as a means to realize these understandings, directing the Institution to undertake “projects of broad scope that may lead to the discovery and utilization of new forces for the benefit of man.” Carnegie was confident that this unusual formula would succeed. And he was right.

For over a century, the Carnegie Institution has sponsored creative and often high-risk science. Some of the luminaries who were supported by the Institution over the years are well known. For example, Edwin Hubble, who made the astonishing discoveries that the universe is larger than just our galaxy and that it is expanding, was a Carnegie astronomer. Barbara McClintock, who discovered the existence of transposable genes, and Alfred Hershey, who proved that DNA holds the genetic code, both won Nobel Prizes for their work as Carnegie scientists. But many other innovative Carnegie researchers who are perhaps not so well known outside their fields of work have made significant advances.

Thus, as part of its centennial celebration, the Institution enlisted the help of many individuals who have contributed to the Institution's history to chronicle the achievements of the Institution's five major departments.