The Paul D. Gottlieb Distinguished Lecture Series was initiated by the Cellular and Molecular Biology graduate students.Paul D. Gottlieb, Ph.D. The series is dedicated to the memory of the late Paul D. Gottlieb, former director of the School of Biological Sciences and outstanding professor of molecular genetics and microbiology.

The intent of the series is to offer graduate students the opportunity to closely interact with inspirational scientists with whom they can share their scientific experiences and achievements. All of the distinguished lecturers are chosen and hosted by the CMB graduate students.

The 2012 Gottlieb Lecture, "Time Travel in Experimental Evolution", was presented by Dr. Richard Lenski from the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics at Michigan State University.  Previous lecturers include Dr. Frances Arnold, Dr. Mark Ptashne, Dr. Phil Sharp and Nobel Laureate and co-discoverer of the double helix structure of DNA, Dr. James D. Watson.