Elizabeth Blackburn is an Australian-American molecular biologist known for her groundbreaking research on telomeres, the protective caps at the ends of chromosomes. She was born on November 26, 1948, in Hobart, Tasmania, and earned her Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge. In 2009, Blackburn was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine alongside Carol Greider and Jack Szostak for their discoveries related to telomeres and the enzyme telomerase. Her work has significant implications for understanding aging and cancer, making her a prominent figure in the field of genetics.