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Glenn Orlando Blough was born on September 5, 1904, in Edmore, Michigan, the son of Levi and Catherine (Thomas) Blough. He spent the first year of his collegiate education at Central Michigan University, from 1925-1926, before transferring to the University of Michigan and receiving his A.B. degree in 1929. He also received an M.A. degree in 1932 from the University of Michigan, and later went on for additional education at the University of Chicago and Columbia University.

From 1925-1927, and again from 1929-1931, Blough worked as a teacher in secondary schools in Michigan. In 1932 he joined the faculty of Eastern Michigan University at Ypsilanti as an instructor of education, a position he retained until 1936. For the 1937-1938 school year he went to Colorado State College in Greeley as an assistant professor of science education. From 1939-1942, Blough worked at the University of Chicago as an instructor of science education.

With the advent of World War II, Blough served in the U. S. Navy from 1942-1946, reaching the position of lieutenant commander. After ending his term of service, he took a post as a specialist for elementary science at the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare in Washington D.C. in the Office of Education, where he remained until 1954. In 1956, he began teaching at the University of Maryland as a professor of education.

Blough authored over 43 books and numerous articles from the period 1937-1973. Most of the books focused on information about plants, animals, the environment, and natural principles such as the workings of sunshine, water, and air. He also wrote several science textbooks for young students. His books won critical acclaim from reviewers for his succinct style and pleasant manner of presenting little-known facts. Several of these titles include Lookout for the Forest: A Conservation Story (1955); After the Sun Goes Down: The Story of Animals at Night (1956); The Young People's Book of Science (1958); and Who Lives in This Meadow? (1961).

Blough was a member of the National Education Association; the National Science Teachers Association, in which he served as president from 1957-1958; the National Council for Elementary Science International, serving as president in 1947; Phi Delta Kappa; and Phi Sigma.

Glenn O. Blough died on August 31, 1995 in Washington, D.C.

(Source: Gale Literary Databases. "Glenn Orlando Blough." Contemporary Authors. 16 Nov. 2001. 28 July 2005.)