Chemistry
John E. Walker – Biographical
Biographical
I was born in Halifax, Yorkshire on January 7th, 1941 to Thomas Ernest Walker and Elsie Walker (née Lawton). My father was a stone mason, and a talented amateur pianist and vocalist. I was brought up with my two younger sisters, Judith and Jennifer, in a rural environment overlooking the Calder valley near Elland, and…
moreDerek Barton – Biographical
Biographical
Derek Harold Richard Barton was born on 8 September 1918, son of William Thomas and Maude Henrietta Barton. In 1938 he entered Imperial College, University of London, where he obtained his B.Sc.Hons. (1st Class) in 1940 and Ph.D. (Organic Chemistry) in 1942. From 1942 to 1944 he was a research chemist on a government project,…
moreAward ceremony speech
Award ceremony speech
Presentation Speech by Professor Arne Fredga, member of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry of Your Majesty, Your Royal Highnesses, Ladies and Gentlemen. One of the fundamental conditions for life on Earth is the ability of carbon atoms to bind each other to a practically unlimited extent. They form chains, often very branched, but also rings…
moreSpeed read: Exploring the Sexual Divide
Speed read
For centuries, philosophers, writers and musicians have all mused upon the differences between the sexes, but to scientists this can be largely explained by the actions of a variety of chemical messengers, or sex hormones, that influence the development of masculine or feminine characteristics. Very little was known about the origin of these sex hormones…
moreThe Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2004
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2004 Prevents self-polination Did you know that roses are bisexual? Most plants are like this – they’re hermaphrodites. With such an arrangement, one wonders what prevents plants from fertilising themselves. In fact, ubiquitin-mediated protein breakdown is involved: the plant recognises and rejects its…
moreOdd Hassel – Biographical
Biographical
Odd Hassel was born in Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway, I7 May, 1897. His father was Ernst Hassel, a physician who specialized in gynaecology, his mother Mathilde née Klaveness. In 1915 he entered the University of his native town where he studied mathematics and physics with chemistry as his chief subject and graduated as a cand.…
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