Forbes was born Anne Pappenheimer in
New York City on November 11, 1911. Her father, Alwin Max Pappenheimer, was a physician and professor of pathology at Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons. Two brothers,
John Pappenheimer and
Alwin Max Pappenheimer Jr., became science professors at
Harvard University. Forbes attended the Lincoln School in New York, where she had diverse extracurricular involvement. She was a writer for the school newspaper, learned to farm, and rode horses. At the Lincoln School she identified that she wanted to be a farmer or a doctor. She entered Radcliffe College at the age of 16. In 1931, with Forbes headed into her senior year at Radcliffe, her parents took her on a trip through several countries, including Russia and China. She was away from her studies for several months, and had to make up the time in summer school. Part of her summer work involved
biochemistry studies at the
Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole. She was granted an undergraduate degree in 1933, after she completed her first year of medical school at Columbia. ==Career==