Week 8
Week 8: Feb. 19 – 25 (Archive)
February 19
- Ferdinand Reich, born 1799; in 1863, codiscovered indium (In,49).
- Svante A. Arrhenius, born 1859, developed theory of electrolytic dissociation; researched viscosity and reaction rates; Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1903).
February 20
- Isaac Adams, Jr., born 1836, pioneer inventor in nickel plating.
- Henry Eyring, born 1901, developed transition-state theory of chemical kinetics; constructed first potential energy surface for a reaction.
- Robert Huber, born 1937; Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1988).
February 21
- John Mercer, born 1791, invented process of treating cotton with caustic soda producing mercerized cotton; discovered many calico dyes.
- Oliver W. Gibbs, born 1822, pioneer in inorganic and analytical chemistry.
February 22
- Frederich Wohler, in letter dated 1828 to J. Jacob Berzelius, announced the synthesis of urea from ammonium cyanate—thus asking whether it is a true synthesis of organic from inorganic material.
- Johannes N. Bronstred, born 1879, offered the acid-base theory (1923); researched inkinetics, properties of ions, catalysis, and nitramide.
- U.S. released $1 million worth of uranium for peaceful atomic power in 1956
February 23
- Casimir Funk, born 1884, developer of vitamins.
- Charles M. Hall first produced electrolytic aluminum in 1886.
- Lejaren A. Hiller Jr., born 1924, researcher in cellulose; developed first reliable process for dyeing Orlon; co-inventor of computer music; classical composer.
- Glenn T. Seaborg et al. chemically identified plutonium (Pu, 94) at the University of California, Berkeley in 1941.
February 24
- John Gorham, born 1783, author of early American text, Elements of Chemical Science.
- Karl Graebe, born 1841, synthesized organic compounds.
- William S. Johnson, born 1913, devised new and efficient methods to synthesize complex molecules including corticoid steroids.
- Observation of first atom of element 107 occurred at GSI Laboratory, Darmstadt, Germany, in 1981.
February 25
- Phoebus A. T. Levene, born 1869, researcher on biochemistry of proteins, hexosamines, and stereochemistry.
- Arthur B. Lamb, born 1880, editor of Journal of the American Chemical Society (1917–1949).
- Ida E. Noddack, born 1896; in 1925 codiscovered rhenium (Rh,75).