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This Week in Chemistry: May 12 - May 18
May 12, 2008 at 01:36 AM
Analtech, Inc. is proud to provide this public service feature - This Week in Chemistry - a recap of major breakthroughs in chemistry as well as the commemoration of key individuals birthdates.
Analtech thanks Dr. Leopold May of The Catholic University of America forproviding this information - you can visit his web site by clicking here.
May 12
b. 1803 Justus von Liebig, "Father of Agricultural Chemistry"; perfected methods for quantitative organic analysis; Liebig condenser; divided foods into fats, carbohydrates & protein.
b. 1895 William F. Giauque, Nobel Prize (1949) for his contributions in thermodynamics, particularly concerning behavior of substances at extremely low temperatures.
b. 1910 Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin determined the structure of Vitamin B12, using x- rays; Nobel Prize (1964) for her determinations by X-ray techniques of the structures of important biochemical substances.
May 13
b. 1857 Ronald Ross, discovered that malaria was transmitted by Anopheles mosquito; Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (1920) for his work on malaria, by which he has shown how it enters the organism and thereby has laid the foundation for successful research on this disease and methods of combating it
o The first state agricultural college Agricultural College of Michigan opened in Lansing, MI, 1857.
May 14
o The patent application for commercial condensed milk was made by Gail Borden, 1853.
o The name “vaseline” for petroleum jelly was given a trademark, 1878.
May 15
b. 1859 Pierre Curie codiscovered polonium (Po, 84) & radium (Ra, 88), with Marie Curie; discovered phenonemon of piezoelectricity; Nobel Prize (1903) in Physics with Marie Curie. In recognition of the extraordinary services they have rendered by their joint researches on the radiation phenomena discovered by Professor Henri Becquerel.
o Edward Jenner inoculated boy with cowpox virus, 1796.
May 16
b. 1763 Nicolas-Louis Vauquelin discovered chromium (Cr, 24), 1797, & beryllium (Be, 4), 1798.
May 17
b. 1836 Joseph N. Lockyer discovered helium (He, 2) in the Sun, 1868. Pierre J. C. Janssen simultaneously observed this.
b. 1897 Odd Hassel researched molecular structure of cyclohexane and derivatives, charge- transfer compounds, and rules for geometry of charge-transfer compounds; Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1969) with Derek H. R. Barton for their contributions to the development of the concept of conformation and its application in chemistry.
May 18
b. 1778 Andrew Ure, first to chemical solutions in terms of chemical equivalents, i.e., normality.
b. 1889 Thomas Midgley, Jr., introduced tetraethyllead as anti-knock agent in gasoline; researcher on organic chlorofluorides as refrigerants.
b. 1901 Vincent du Vigneaud studied sulfur containing proteins, including insulin, etc.; researched transmethylation and metabolism of single carbon compounds; Nobel Prize (1955) for his work on biochemically important sulphur compounds, especially for the first synthesis of a polypeptide hormone.
o Dow Chemical Co., incorporated, 1897.
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