The research interests of John Albert Raven, who died on 23 May 2024 aged 82, extended in scale from plant cell biochemistry and physiology through whole-plant physiology and ecophysiology to plant ecology and evolution of aquatic and terrestrial plants and even astrobiology. He collected and collated an enormous amount of information for which he had a powerful memory. He collaborated widely with scientists world-wide and helped many researchers strengthen their careers. John Raven’s achievements deserve to be fondly remembered. The present contribution largely focuses on his early research career, during which he collaborated with the present author, and highlights later influential activities and contributions that relate to plant-soil interactions, and his unique personality as a researcher.

约翰·阿尔伯特·雷文 （John Albert Raven） 于 2024 年 5 月 23 日去世，享年 82 岁，他的研究兴趣从植物细胞生物化学和生理学扩展到全植物生理学和生态生理学，再到植物生态学和水生和陆生植物的进化，甚至天体生物学。他收集和整理了大量信息，他对此记忆力很强。他与世界各地的科学家广泛合作，并帮助许多研究人员加强了他们的职业生涯。John Raven 的成就值得深情铭记。本文主要集中在他早期的研究生涯中，在此期间他与现任作者合作，并强调了后来与植物-土壤相互作用相关的有影响力的活动和贡献，以及他作为研究人员的独特个性。