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Linus Pauling: The Story of An Unlikely Hero

Linus Pauling was born in 1901 in Oregon and showed a strong interest in science from a young age. He received his PhD in chemistry in 1925 from the California Institute of Technology. Pauling made numerous scientific contributions, including proposing the alpha-helix protein structure in 1951, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He was also awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1962 for his work against nuclear weapon testing. Pauling is the only person to have received two unshared Nobel Prizes. He continued his scientific research until his death in 1994 at the age of 93.

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86 views

Linus Pauling: The Story of An Unlikely Hero

Linus Pauling was born in 1901 in Oregon and showed a strong interest in science from a young age. He received his PhD in chemistry in 1925 from the California Institute of Technology. Pauling made numerous scientific contributions, including proposing the alpha-helix protein structure in 1951, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He was also awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1962 for his work against nuclear weapon testing. Pauling is the only person to have received two unshared Nobel Prizes. He continued his scientific research until his death in 1994 at the age of 93.

Uploaded by

Dayne Carter
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Linus Pauling:

The Story of an Unlikely Hero


Childhood
• On February 28, 1901, Linus Pauling was born in
Portland, Oregon. He was the first born child to
Henry and Lucy Pauling. As a child, he showed a
strong interest in reading. He was particularly
interested in history and natural science. He showed
such a great deal of understanding about these
topics that his father wrote a letter to the Portland
newspaper about him when he was 9.
OREGON STATE COLLEGE
• In 1919, he attended college at Oregon State.
• During his firist year, he was asked to have a part
time job teaching a class of his own while still being a
student.
• Pauling’s students described him as a kind spirited
individual who was very knowledgeable and
participated in many debates.
• Pauling eventually got a full time teaching job while
he was still a student. In 1922 he graduated and
received his Bachelors in chemical engineering.
California Insti tute of
Technology
• After graduation he wanted to continue his studies.
He went to the California Institute of Technology
(CIT) where he became a graduate student there
from 1922 to 1925, working under Professor Roscoe
G. Dickinson and Richard C. Tolman. In 1925 he was
got his Ph.D. in chemistry, with minors in physics and
mathematics.
Early Success
• As a teacher he was quickly rewarded by being
elected into the Research Associate in 1925, National
Research Fellow in Chemistry in 1926, and the Fellow
of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial
Foundation in 1927. The Guggenheim Memorial
Foundation recognizes scholars who have a great
deal of knowledge in the sciences. That same year,
he was promoted to the Assistant Professor of
Chemistry.
World War II
• During World War II, Pauling’s knowledge was crucial
to the United States. He served on the board of the
National Defense Research Commission and was a
member of the Research Board for National Security.
He helped the US work on rocket propellants, and
oxygen deficiency indicators. For his hard work, he
was awarded the Presidential Medal of Merit in
1948.
Nobel Prize
• In 1951, he proposed the alpha-helix structure. This
structure was very significant because knowing its
structure helped chemists explain how all proteins
were structured. Many people questioned whether
or not his structure was right, but after numerous
tests it was proven correctly. Finally, in 1954, he was
recognized for his contributions and received the
Nobel Prize for Chemistry
Alpha Helix Structure
Nobel Prize # 2
• Pauling was very proud of his accomplishments but was still
upset to discover that nuclear testing was still going on.
• Although, he wasn’t part of it, he felt that it needed to stop.
Together with Ava Helen, his future wife, he presented a
petition to the United Nations that contained the signatures
of than more 11,000 scientists. All of the scientists who
signed also wanted to put a stop to nuclear testing.
• Finally, in 1962 he received his second Nobel Prize. This time
he received the top award, the Nobel Peace Prize.
• Pauling is still today the only person who has won two
undivided Nobel Prizes in different categories.
LINUS PAULING INSTITUTE
• After this he continued to do more research
for many years. He would become a professor
at both San Diego University and Stanford
University. He became so prominent in his
work force that he was awarded with a school
under his name that still exists today, the Linus
Pauling Institute of Science and Medicine.
An Unexpected Turn
• Unfortunately, in 1981 his wife, Ava Helen passed
away. Many say that after her death he became
depressed and a lone body.
• However, he still continued his research hoping to
find a cure for cancer. He worked and worked
nonstop until 1992 when he publically announced he
had cancer.
• For the next few weeks he had close friends visit him
until he died in his ranch on August 9, 1994 at 93
years old.
Legacy
• Linus Pauling was one of the most successful
chemists in his field of work. His numerous awards
and accomplishment have put him categorized with
some of the greatest, and rightfully so.
• Many scientists have been quoted saying that Pauling
is the father of molecular biology.
• He was also included in a list of the 20 greatest
scientists of all time by the magazine New Scientist,
with Albert Einstein being the only other scientist
from the twentieth century on the list.

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