The last member of the Great Trinity died on March 3 at the age of 98. Sewall Wright outlived J.B.S. Haldane and R.A. Fisher by more than 20 years. For a generation these three almost completely dominated the field of population genetics, quantitative genetics, and the mathematical theory of evolution. It is the end of an era.
The first issue of Genetic Epidemiology was dedicated to Sewall Wright on the occasion of his 94th birthday. It included a picture of him taken in 1930, about the time when he wrote his famous paper "Evolution in Mendelian Populations." The picture accompanying this article is much more recent, about 1970. Genetic epidemiology unites its two parent disciplines, genetics and epidemiology. In his initial editorial comment, the editor wrote: "Genetic epidemiology differs from epidemiology by its explicit consideration of genetic factors and family resemblance; it differs from population genetics by its focus on disease; it also differs from medical genetics by its emphasis on population aspects." The field, he added, is indebted to the three pioneers for providing it with a sound foundation. Every issue of Genetic Epidemiology shows the influence of Wright.