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Priestley Medal

Priestley Medal

The Priestley Medal is awarded by the American Chemical Society (ACS) for distinguished service in the field of chemistry. Established in 1922, the award is named after Joseph Priestley, the discoverer of oxygen who emigrated to the United States of America in 1793.

Recent recipients

- 1990 Roald Hoffmann
- 1991 Harry B. Gray
- 1992 Carl Djerassi
- 1993 Robert W. Parry
- 1994 Howard E. Simmons
- 1995 Sir Derek H. R. Barton
- 1996 Ernest L. Eliel
- 1997 Mary L. Good
- 1998 F. Albert Cotton
- 1999 Ronald Breslow
- 2000 Darleane C. Hoffman
- 2001 Fred Basolo
- 2002 Allen J. Bard
- 2003 Edwin J. Vandenberg
- 2004 Elias J. Corey
- 2005 George A. Olah

External links

- [http://www.chemistry.org/portal/a/c/s/1/acsdisplay.html?DOC=awards%5Cpriestley.html Priestley Medal]
- [http://www.priestleysociety.net The Priestley Society]
- [http://www.josephpriestley.info Joseph Priestley Information Website] Category:Science and engineering prizes

Priestley Medal

Recent recipients

External links

Chemistry

Chemistry (derived from the Arabic word kimia, alchemy, where al is Arabic for the) is the science of matter that deals with the composition, structure, and properties of substances and with the transformations that they undergo. In the study of matter, chemistry also investigates its interactions with energy and itself (see physics, biology). Because of the diversity of matter, which is mostly composed of different combinations of atoms, chemists often study how atoms of different chemical elements interact to form molecules and how molecules interact with each other. molecules

Introduction

Chemistry is a large field encompassing many subdisciplines that often overlap with significant portions of other sciences. The fundamental component of chemistry is that it involves matter in some way (this explains its broad reach). It may involve the interaction of matter with non-material phenomena such as energy. More central to chemistry is the interaction of matter with other matter such as in the classic chemical reaction where chemical bonds are broken and made, forming new molecules. Matter, such as the chair you are sitting on or the air you breathe, is known today to consist of molecules. Each molecule consists of small bits of matter known as atoms that are connected together through chemical bonds. Each atom consists of smaller bits of matter known as subatomic particles. The structure of the world we commonly experience and the properties of the matter we commonly interact with are determined by the nature of this matter on the chemical level. Steel is hard because of how the atoms are bound together. Wood will burn because it can react with oxygen in a chemical reaction. Water is a liquid at room temperature because of how each molecule of water interacts with its neighbors. In fact, you are a thinking, sentient being because of an on-going series of chemical reactions and other chemical interactions. You can see this text because of how light interacts with molecules called proteins in the back of your eye. Chemistry is often called the central science because it is what connects most of the other sciences together. Chemistry is in some ways physics on a larger scale and in some ways is biology or geology on a smaller scale. Chemistry is used to understand and make better materials for engineering. It is used to understand the chemical mechanisms of disease as well as to create pharmaceuticals to treat disease. Chemistry is somehow involved in almost every science, every technology and every "thing". With such a large area of study, it is impossible to know everything about chemistry and very difficult to summarize the field concisely. Even the most knowledgable, experienced chemist only knows a very narrow area of chemistry better than others. Of course, most chemists have a broad general knowledge of many areas of chemistry as well. Chemistry is divided into many areas of study called subdisciplines in which chemists specialize. The chemistry taught at the high school or early college level is often called "general chemistry" and is intended to be an introduction to a wide variety of fundamental concepts and to give the student the tools to continue on to more advanced subjects. Many concepts presented at this level are often incomplete and technically inaccurate yet of extraordinary utility. Chemists regularly use these simple, elegant tools and explanations in their work when they suffice because the best solution possible is often so overwhelmingly difficult and the true solution is usually unobtainable. The science of chemistry is historically a recent development but has its roots in alchemy which has been practiced for millennia throughout the world. The word chemistry is directly derived from the word alchemy, however the etymology of alchemy is unclear (see alchemy).

Subdisciplines of chemistry

Chemistry typically is divided into several major sub-disciplines. There are also several main cross-disciplinary and more specialized fields of chemistry. ; Analytical chemistry : Analytical chemistry is the analysis of material samples to gain an understanding of their chemical composition and structure. Analytical chemistry incorporates standardized experimental methods in chemistry. These methods may be used in all subdiciplines of chemistry, exluding purely theoretical chemistry. ; Biochemistry : Biochemistry is the study of the chemicals, chemical reactions and chemical interactions that take place in living organisms. Biochemistry and organic chemistry are closely related f.e. in medicinal chemistry. ; Inorganic chemistry : Inorganic chemistry is the study of the properties and reactions of inorganic compounds. The distinction between organic and inorganic disciplines is not absolute and there is much overlap, most importantly in the sub-discipline of organometallic chemistry. ; Organic chemistry : Organic chemistry is the study of the structure, properties, composition, mechanisms, and reactions of organic compounds. ; Physical chemistry : Physical chemistry or physicochemistry is the study of the physical basis of chemical systems and processes. In particular, the energetics and dynamics of such systems and processes are of interest to physical chemists. Important areas of study include chemical thermodynamics, chemical kinetics, electrochemistry, statistical mechanics, and spectroscopy. Physical chemistry has large overlap with molecular physics. ; Theoretical chemistry : Theoretical chemistry is the study of chemistry via theoretical reasoning (usually within mathematics or physics). In particular the application of quantum mechanics to chemistry is called quantum chemistry. Since the end of the second world war, the development of computers has allowed a systematic development of computational chemistry, which is the art of developing and applying computer programs for solving chemical problems. Theoretical chemistry has large overlap with molecular physics. ; Other fields : Astrochemistry, Atmospheric chemistry, Chemical Engineering, Electrochemistry, Environmental chemistry, Geochemistry, History of chemistry, Materials science, Medicinal chemistry, Molecular Biology, Molecular genetics, Nuclear chemistry, Organometallic chemistry, Petrochemistry, Pharmacology, Photochemistry, Phytochemistry, Polymer chemistry, Supramolecular chemistry, Surface chemistry, and Thermochemistry.

Fundamental concepts

Nomenclature

Nomenclature refers to the system for naming chemical compounds. There are well-defined systems in place for naming chemical species. Organic compounds are named according to the organic nomenclature system. Inorganic compounds are named according to the inorganic nomenclature system. See also: IUPAC nomenclature

Atoms

Main article: Atom. An atom is a collection of matter consisting of a positively charged core (the nucleus) which contains protons and neutrons, and which maintains a number of electrons to balance the positive charge in the nucleus.

Elements

Main article: Chemical element. An element is a class of atoms which have the same number of protons in the nucleus. This number is known as the atomic number of the element. For example, all atoms with 6 protons in their nuclei are atoms of the chemical element carbon, and all atoms with 92 protons in their nuclei are atoms of the element uranium. The most convenient presentation of the elements is in the periodic table, which groups elements with similar chemical properties together. Lists of the elements by name, by symbol, and by atomic number are also available. See also: isotope

Compounds

Main article: Chemical compound A compound is a substance with a fixed ratio of chemical elements which determines the composition, and a particular organisation which determines chemical properties. For example, water is a compound containing hydrogen and oxygen in the ratio of two to one, with the Oxygen between the hydrogens, and an angle of 104.5° between them. Compounds are formed and interconverted by chemical reactions.

Molecules

Main article: Molecule. A molecule is the smallest indivisible portion of a pure compound that retains a set of unique chemical properties. A molecule consists of two or more atoms covalently bonded together.

Ions

Main article: Ion. An ion is a charged species, or an atom or a molecule that has lost or gained an electron. Positively charged cations (e.g. sodium cation Na⁺) and negatively charged anions (e.g. chloride Cl^-) can form neutral salts (e.g. sodium chloride NaCl). Examples of polyatomic ions that do not split up during acid-base reactions are hydroxide (OH^-), or phosphate (PO₄^3-).

Bonding

Main article: Chemical bond. A chemical bond is an interaction which holds together atoms in molecules or crystals. In many simple compounds, valence bond theory and the concept of oxidation number can be used to predict molecular structure and composition. Similarly, theories from classical physics can be used to predict many ionic structures. With more complicated compounds, such as metal complexes, valence bond theory fails and alternative approaches which are based on quantum chemistry, such as molecular orbital theory, are necessary.

States of matter

Main article: Phase (matter). A phase is a set of states of a chemical system that have similar bulk structural properties, over a range of conditions, such as pressure or temperature. Physical properties, such as density and refractive index tend to fall within values characteristic of the phase. The phase of matter is defined by the phase transition, which is when energy put into or taken out of the system goes into rearranging the structure of the system, instead of changing the bulk conditions. Sometimes the distinction between phases can be continuous instead of having a discrete boundary, in this case the matter is considered to be in a supercritical state. When three states meet based on the conditions, it is known as a triple point and since this is invariant, it is a convenient way to define a set of conditions. The most familiar examples of phases are solids, liquids, and gases. Less familiar phases include plasmas, Bose-Einstein condensates and fermionic condensates and the paramagnetic and ferromagnetic phases of magnetic materials. Even the familiar ice has many different phases, depending on the pressure and temperature of the system. While most familiar phases deal with three-dimensional systems, it is also possible to define analogs in two-dimensional systems, which is getting a lot of attention because of its relevance to biology.

Chemical reactions

Main article: Chemical reaction. Chemical reactions are transformations in the fine structure of molecules. Such reactions can result in molecules attaching to each other to form larger molecules, molecules breaking apart to form two or more smaller molecules, or rearrangement of atoms within or across molecules. Chemical reactions usually involve the making or breaking of chemical bonds.

Quantum chemistry

Main article: Quantum chemistry. Quantum chemistry describes the behavior of matter at the molecular scale. It is, in principle, possible to describe all chemical systems using this theory. In practice, only the simplest chemical systems may realistically be investigated in purely quantum mechanical terms, and approximations must be made for most practical purposes (e.g., Hartree-Fock, post Hartree-Fock or Density functional theory, see computational chemistry for more details). Hence a detailed understanding of quantum mechanics is not necessary for most chemistry, as the important implications of the theory (principally the orbital approximation) can be understood and applied in simpler terms.

Laws

The most fundamental concept in chemistry is the law of conservation of mass, which states that there is no detectable change in the quantity of matter during an ordinary chemical reaction. Modern physics shows that it is actually energy that is conserved, and that energy and mass are related; a concept which becomes important in nuclear chemistry. Conservation of energy leads to the important concepts of equilibrium, thermodynamics, and kinetics. Further laws of chemistry elaborate on the law of conservation of mass. Joseph Proust's law of definite composition says that pure chemicals are composed of elements in a definite formulation; we now know that the structural arrangement of these elements is also important. Dalton's law of multiple proportions says that these chemicals will present themselves in proportions that are small whole numbers (i.e. 1:2 O:H in water); although in many systems (notably biomacromolecules and minerals) the ratios tend to require large numbers, and are frequently represented as a fraction. Such compounds are known as Non-Stoichiometric Compounds More modern laws of chemistry define the relationship between energy and transformations.
- In equilibrium, molecules exist in mixture defined by the transformations possible on the timescale of the equilibrium, and are in a ratio defined by the intrinsic energy of the molecules—the lower the intrinsic energy, the more abundant the molecule.
- Transforming one structure to another requires the input of energy to cross an energy barrier; this can come from the intrinsic energy of the molecules themselves, or from an external source which will generally accelerate transformations. The higher the energy barrier, the slower the transformation occurs.
- There is a hypothetical intermediate, or transition structure, that corresponds to the structure at the top of the energy barrier. The Hammond-Leffler Postulate states that this structure looks most similar to the product or starting material which has intrinsic energy closest to that of the energy barrier. Stabilizing this hypothetical intermediate through chemical interaction is one way to achieve catalysis.
- All chemical processes are reversible (law of microscopic reversibility) although some processes have such an energy bias, they are essentially irreversible.

History of chemistry

- Alchemy
- Discovery of the chemical elements
- History of chemistry
- Nobel Prize in chemistry
- Timeline of chemical element discovery

Etymology

Old French: alkemie; Arab al-kimia: the art of transformation. See also: alchemy

External links

- [http://www.allchemicals.info/ Chemical Glossary]
- [http://chem.sis.nlm.nih.gov/chemidplus/ Chemistry Information Database includes basic information and some toxicity]
- [http://www.chem.qmw.ac.uk/iupac/ IUPAC Nomenclature Home Page], see especially the "Gold Book" containing definitions of standard chemical terms
- [http://www.cci.ethz.ch/index.html Experiments] videos and photos of the techniques and results
- [http://physchem.ox.ac.uk/MSDS/ Material safety data sheets for a variety of chemicals]
- [http://www.flinnsci.com/search_MSDS.asp Material Safety Data Sheets]

1922

1922 (MCMXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar).

Events

- January 7 - Dáil Éireann, the extra-legal parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64-57 votes.
- January 10 - Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éireann.
- January 11 - First successful insulin treatment of diabetes.
- January 12 - British government releases remaining Irish prisoners captured in the War of Independence.
- January 13 - Flu epidemic has claimed 804 victims in Britain.
- January 15 - Michael Collins becomes Chairman of the Irish Provisional Government.
- January 24 - Christian K. Nelson patents the Eskimo Pie.
- January 29 - Union of Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador is dissolved
- February 1 - William Desmond Taylor, Hollywood director, is shot in his home
- February 2 - Ulysses (novel) by James Joyce is published in Paris on his fortieth birthday by Sylvia Beach.
- February 5 - DeWitt and Lila Wallace publish the first issue of Reader's Digest.
- February 6 - Achille Ratti becomes Pope Pius XI.
- February 6 - Five Power Naval Disarmament Treaty signed between United States, Britain, Japan, France, and Italy
- February 8 - President of the United States, Warren G. Harding introduces the first radio in the White House.
- February 8 - Cheka becomes GPU, a section of NKVD
- February 14 - Finnish Minister of the Interior Heikki Ritavuori is assassinated by Ernst Tandefelt.
- February 25 - Murderer Henri Désiré Landru's head is chopped off by the guillotine.
- February 27 - A challenge to the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, allowing women the right to vote, is rebuffed by the Supreme Court of the United States.
- February 28 - The United Kingdom accepts the independence of Egypt.
- March 1 - Ice mass breaks the Oder dam in Breslau
- March 1 - The British Civil Aviation Authority is established.
- March 11 - Mohandas Gandhi is arrested in Bombay for sedition
- March 15 - Egypt having gained nominal independence from the United Kingdom, Fuad I becomes King of Egypt.
- March 18 - In India, Mohandas Gandhi is sentenced to six years in prison for sedition. He would serve only two years.
- March 20 - The USS Langley is commissioned as the first United States Navy aircraft carrier.
- April 7 - Teapot Dome scandal: United States Secretary of the Interior leases Teapot Dome oil reserves in Wyoming.
- April 7 - First air collision between Daimler Airways DH 18 ja Grands Express Farman Goliat collide over Poix
- April 10 - The historic Genoa Conference commences in Genoa. The representatives of 34 countries convened to speak about monetary economics in the wake of World War I.
- April 13 - State of Massachusetts opens all public offices to women
- April 16 - The Treaty of Rapallo marks rapprochement between the Weimar Republic and Bolshevist Russia.
- May 5 - In The Bronx, construction begins on Yankee Stadium.
- May 12 - 20-ton meteorite lands near Blackstone, Virginia, USA
- May 19 - Young Pioneer organization of the Soviet Union is established.
- May 29 - British Liberal MP Horatio Bottomley jailed for 7 years for fraud fraud
- May 30 - In Washington, D.C., the Lincoln Memorial is dedicated.
- June 1 - Official founding of the Royal Ulster Constabulary.
- June 1 - Bolshevik forces defeat Asmachi troops under Enver Pasha
- June 22 - IRA rebels assassinated British field marshal Henry Wilson in Belgravia - assassins are sentenced to death July 18.
- June 24 - Assassination of Weimar Republic foreign minister Walter Rathenau - murderers are captured July 17
- June 26 - Louis Honoré Charles Antoine Grimaldi becomes Reigning Prince Louis II of Monaco.
- June 28 - The Irish Civil War begins
- August 12 - Death of Arthur Griffith, President of Dáil Éireann
- August 22 - Death of General Michael Collins - President of the Irish Provisional Government and Commander-in-Chief of the Provisional Army, killed in an ambush.
- August 23 - Revolt against the Spanish in Morocco
- August 28 - Japan agrees to withdraw its troops from Siberia
- September 9 - Turkish forces pursuing withdrawing Greek troops enter Smyrna
- September 11 - One of the Herald Sun of Melbourne, Australia's predecessor papers The Sun News-Pictorial is founded.
- September 13 - 15 - Fire, probably started by Turkish troops, destroys most of Smyrna. Death toll estimated 100,000
- September 18 - Hungary joins the League of Nations
- October 9 - Sir William Horwood, London Metropolitan Police Service commissioner is poisoned by arsenic-filled chocolates
- October 23 - German army occupies Saxony and crushes Soviet Republic of Saxony
- October 25 - The Third Dáil enacts the Constitution of the Irish Free State.
- October 28 - In Italy, with the March on Rome, Fascism obtains power and Benito Mussolini becomes prime minister
- October 28 - Red Army occupies Vladivostok
- October 31 - Benito Mussolini becomes the youngest Premier in the history of Italy.
- September 23 - Gdynia Seaport Construction Act passed by the Polish parliament.
- November 1 - Ottoman Empire is abolished and its last sultan Mehmed VI Vahdettin abdicates.
- November 1 - The broadcasting license fee of ten shillings introduced in the United Kingdom
- November 4 - In Egypt, British archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to King Tutankhamen's tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
- November 14 - The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) begins radio service in the United Kingdom. 2LO became the first radio station in the United Kingdom.
- November 17 - Former Ottoman sultan Mehmed VI leaves for exile in Italy.
- November 19 - Abdul Mejid II, Crown Prince of the Ottoman Empire is elected Caliph.
- November 21 - Rebecca Felton of Georgia takes the oath of office, becoming the first woman United States Senator.
- November 24 - Popular author and Irish Republican Army member Robert Erskine Childers is executed by an Irish Free State firing squad for illegally carrying a revolver.
- November 26 - Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon become the first people to enter the tomb of Egyptian King Tutankhamun in over 3000 years. Tutankhamun
- December 5 - British parliament enacts the Irish Free State Constitution Act, by which it legally sanctions the new Constitution of the Irish Free State.
- December 6 - The Irish Free State officially comes into existence. George V becomes the Free State's monarch. Tim Healy is appointed first Governor-General of the Irish Free State and W.T. Cosgrave becomes President of the Executive Council.
- December 14 - Assassination of Gabriel Narutowicz, the president of Poland
- December 30 - Russia and allied Soviet republics form the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).

Exact month/day of event unknown

- Invention of Vegemite by Australian Fred Walker
- Kurd Istigdul Djemijetin, the Kurdish Independence Committee, founded
- Ring Magazine first published
- Molly Pitcher Club formed to promote the repeal of prohibition in United States
- Raymond Pearl founds Quarterly Review of Biology.
- Thompson Webb founds The Webb Schools

Births

January-March

- January 1 - Ernest "Fritz" Hollings, U.S. Senator from South Carolina
- January 7 - Jean-Pierre Rampal, French flutist (d. 2000)
- January 9 - Har Gobind Khorana, Indian biochemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- January 13 - Albert Lamorisse, French film director (d. 1970)
- January 16 - Ernesto Bonino, Italian singer
- January 17 - Nicholas Katzenbach, American politician
- January 17 - Betty White, American television actress
- January 19 - Guy Madison, American actor (d. 1996)
- January 21 - Paul Scofield, English actor
- January 22 - Leonel Brizola, Brazilian politician
- January 28 - Robert W. Holley, American biochemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (d. 1993)
- January 30 - Dick Martin, American comedian
- February 1 - Renata Tebaldi, Italian soprano (d. 2004)
- February 6 - Patrick Macnee, British actor
- February 6 - Bill Johnston, Australian cricketer
- February 6 - Denis Norden, British television and radio scriptwriter and personality
- February 7 - Hattie Jacques, British actress (d. 1980)
- February 9 - Kathryn Grayson, American actress
- February 15 - John Bayard Anderson, U.S Congressman and Presidential candidate
- February 17 - Marshall Teague, American race car driver (d. 1959)
- February 18 - Helen Gurley Brown, American editor and publisher
- February 24 - Richard Hamilton, British painter
- February 24 - Steven Hill, American actor
- March 1 - William Gaines, American publisher of MAD Magazine (d. 1992)
- March 1 - Yitzhak Rabin, Prime Minister of Israel, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1995)
- March 5 - Pier Paolo Pasolini, Italian film director
- March 8 - Mizuki Shigeru, Japanese author
- March 9 - Tommy Cooper, British comedian and magician (d. 1984)
- March 12 - Jack Kerouac, American author (d. 1969)
- March 12 - Lane Kirkland, American union leader (d. 1999)
- March 18 - Egon Bahr, German politician
- March 20 - Carl Reiner, American film director, producer, actor, and comedian
- March 21 - Russ Meyer, American film director and producer (d. 2004)
- March 27 - Stefan Wul, French writer (d. 2003)
- March 28 - Felice Chiusano, Italian singer (Quartetto Cetra)
- March 28 - Joey Maxim, American boxer (d. 2001)
- March 31 - Richard Kiley, American actor and singer (d. 1999)

April-June

- April 1 - William Manchester, American writer (d. 2004)
- April 3 - Maurice Riel, Canadian Senator
- April 4 - Elmer Bernstein, American composer (d. 2004)
- April 5 - Sir Tom Finney, English footballer
- April 5 - Christopher Hewett, British actor (d. 2001)
- April 5 - Gale Storm, American singer and actress
- April 7 - Mongo Santamaria, Cuban jazz musician (d. 2003)
- April 13 - Julius Nyerere, President of Tanzania (d. 1999)
- April 16 - Sir Kingsley Amis, English novelist (d. 1995)
- April 22 - Charles Mingus, American musician (d. 1979)
- April 28 - Alistair MacLean, Scottish writer (d. 1987)
- May 7 - Darren McGavin, American actor
- May 14 - Franjo Tuđman, President of Croatia (d. 1999)
- May 15 - Setouchi Jakucho, Japanese writer and Buddhist nun
- May 18 - Kai Winding, Danish-born musician (d. 1983)
- May 21 - James Lopez Watson, American judge (d. 2001)
- May 22 - Quinn Martin, American television producer (d. 1987)
- May 25 - Enrico Berlinguer, Italian politician (d. 1984)
- May 27 - Christopher Lee, English actor
- May 28 - Lou Duva, American boxing trainer
- May 29 - Iannis Xenakis, Greek composer (d. 2001)
- May 30 - Hal Clement, American writer (d. 2003)
- May 31 - Denholm Elliott, English actor (d. 1992)
- June 1 - Povel Ramel, Swedish musican
- June 2 - Charlie Sifford, American golfer
- June 10 - Judy Garland, American singer and actress (d. 1969)
- June 18 - Claude Helffer, French pianist (d. 2004)
- June 19 - Aage Niels Bohr, Danish physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- June 24 - Tata Giacobetti, Italian singer and lyricist (Quartetto Cetra)
- June 29 - Vasko Popa, Yugoslavian poet (d. 1991)

July to December

- July 15 - Leon M. Lederman, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- July 18 - Thomas Kuhn, American philosopher of science (d. 1996)
- July 19 - Tuanku Jaafar ibni Almarhum Tuanku Abdul Rahman, King of Malaysia
- July 31 - Bill Kaysing, American writer
- August 15 - Lukas Foss, German-born composer
- August 17 - Agostinho Neto, Angolan politician (d. 1979)
- August 22 - Sosuke Uno, Prime Minister of Japan (d. 1998)
- August 23 - George Kell, baseball player
- September 1 - Vittorio Gassmann, Italian actor and director (d. 2000)
- September 3 - Salli Terri, Canadian mezzo-soprano (d. 1996)
- September 8 - Sid Caesar, American actor and comedian
- September 9 - Hans Georg Dehmelt, German-born physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- September 12 - Jackson Mac Low, American poet (d. 2004)
- September 15 - Jackie Cooper, American actor and director
- September 22 - Chen Ning Yang, Chinese-born physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- September 25 - Hammer DeRoburt, first President of Nauru (d. 1992)
- October 1 - Burke Marshall, American lawyer and politician (d. 2003)
- October 5 - José Froilán González, Argentine race car driver
- October 15 - Luigi Giussani, Italian Catholic priest (d. 2005)
- October 22 - John Chafee, American politician (d. 1999)
- October 27 - Poul Bundgaard, Danish actor and singer (d. 1998)
- October 31 - Barbara Bel Geddes, film and stage actress (d. 2005)
- November 8 - Christiaan Barnard, South African surgeon (d. 2001)
- November 11 - Kurt Vonnegut, American novelist
- November 14 - Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Egyptian Secretary General of the United Nations
- November 14 - Veronica Lake, American actress
- November 16 - José Saramago, Portuguese author, Nobel Prize laureate
- November 17 - Stanley Cohen, American physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- November 19 - Yuri Knorosov, Russian linguist and epigrapher (d. 1999)
- November 26 - Charles M. Schulz American cartoonist (d. 2000)
- December 11 - Dilip Kumar, Indian actor
- December 14 - Nikolay Basov, Russian physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2001)
- December 22 - Barbara Billingsley, American actress
- December 22 - Jack Brooks, American politician
- December 23 - Micheline Ostermeyer, French athlete and musician (d. 2001)
- December 23 - Donald Tennant, American advertising agency executive (d.2001)
- December 28 - Stan Lee, American comics creator

Deaths

- January 5 - Ernest Shackleton, Irish explorer (b. 1874)
- January 22 - Pope Benedict XV (b. 1854)
- January 22 - Fredrik Bajer, Danish politician and pacifist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (b. 1837)
- February 2 - William Desmond Taylor, Irish-born film director (b. 1872)
- March 1 - Rafael Moreno Aranzadi, Spanish footballer (b. 1892)
- March 24 - Walter Parr, British preacher (b. 1871)
- April 1 - Emperor Karl I of Austria (b. 1887)
- April 2 - Hermann Rorschach, Swiss psychiatrist (b. 1884)
- May 18 - Charles Louis Alphonse Laveran, French physician, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1845)
- May 19 - Son, Byong-Hi, Korean leader of the March 1st Movement (b. 1861)
- June 6 - Lillian Russell, American singer and actress (b. 1861)
- June 18 - Jacobus Kapteyn, Dutch astronomer (b. 1851)
- June 26 - Albert I of Monaco (b. 1848)
- July 20 - Andrey Markov, Russian mathematician (b. 1856)
- August 2 - Alexander Graham Bell, Scottish-born inventor (b. 1847)
- August 5 - Harry Boland, Irish republican (b. 1887)
- August 12 - Arthur Griffith, President of Ireland (b. 1871)
- August 22 - Michael Collins, Irish leader (assassinated) (b. 1890)
- September 4 - Sarah L. Winchester, builder of the Winchester Mystery House (b. 1837)
- October 30 - Géza Gárdonyi, Hungarian author (b. 1863)
- November 7 - Sam Thompson, baseball player (b. 1860)

Marriages

Nobel Prizes

- Physics - Niels Henrik David Bohr
- Chemistry - Francis William Aston
- Medicine - Archibald Vivian Hill, Otto Fritz Meyerhof
- Literature - Jacinto Benavente
- Peace - Fridtjof Nansen

Heads of state in 1922

- Albania -
- Xhafer Ypi, Prime Minister of Albania (acting, 1922).
- Ahmet Zogu, Prime Minister of Albania (acting, 1922 - 1924).
- Belgium - King Albert I of Belgium (1909 - 1934).
- Bolshevist Russia/Soviet Union - Mikhail Kalinin, President of the Soviet Union (1919/1922 - 1946).
- Costa Rica - Julio Acosta García, President of Costa Rica (1920 - 1924).
- Denmark - King Christian X of Denmark (1912 - 1947).
- Egypt - King Fuad I of Egypt (1917/1922 - 1936).
- Ethiopia - Empress Zawditu of Ethiopia (1916 - 1930).
- France - Alexandre Millerand, President of France (1920 - 1924).
- Germany - Friedrich Ebert, Reich President (1919 - 1925).
- Italy - King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy (1900 - 1946).
- Japan - Yoshihito, the Taisho Emperor (1912 - 1926).
- Mexico - Álvaro Obregón, President of Mexico (1920 - 1924).
- Monaco -
- Reigning Prince Albert I of Monaco (1889 - 1922).
- Reigning Prince Louis II of Monaco (1922- 1949).
- Netherlands - Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands (1890 - 1948).
- Norway - King Haakon VII of Norway (1905 - 1957).
- Ottoman Empire -
- Sultan Mehmed VI (1918 - 1922).
- Caliph Abdul Mejid II (1922 - 1924).
- Republic of China -
- Xu Shichang of the Beijing government, President of the Republic of China (1918 - 1922).
- Sun Yat-sen of the Guangzhou government, rival President of the Republic of China (1921 - 1925).
- Saudi Arabia - Ibn Saud, King of Saudi Arabia (1902 - 1953).
- Sweden - King Gustav V of Sweden (1907 - 1950).
- United Kingdom - King George V of the United Kingdom (1910 - 1936).
- United States - Warren Gamaliel Harding, President of the United States (1921 - 1923).

Oxygen

Oxygen is a chemical element in the periodic table. It has the symbol O and atomic number 8. The element is very common, found not only on Earth but throughout the universe, usually covalently bonded with other elements. Unbound oxygen (usually called molecular oxygen, O₂, a diatomic molecule) first appeared on Earth during the Paleoproterozoic era (between 2500 million years ago and 1600 million years ago) and as a product of the metabolic action of early anaerobes (archaea and bacteria). The presence of free oxygen drove most of the organisms then living to extinction. The atmospheric abundance of free oxygen in later geological epochs and up to the present has been largely driven by photosynthetic organisms, roughly three quarters by phytoplankton and algae in the oceans and one quarter from terrestrial plants.

Characteristics

At standard temperature and pressure, oxygen is mostly found as a gas consisting of a diatomic molecule with the chemical formula O₂. O₂ has two energetic forms:
- The low-energy predominant single-bonded diradical triplet oxygen. This native diradical quality of oxygen contributes to its destructive chemical nature. This form is stabilized by the degeneracy effect.
- The high-energy double-bonded molecule singlet oxygen. Oxygen is a major component of air, produced by plants during photosynthesis, and is necessary for aerobic respiration in animals. The word oxygen derives from two words in Greek, οξυς (oxys) (acid, sharp) and γεινομαι (geinomai) (engender). The name "oxygen" was chosen because, at the time it was discovered in the late 18th century, it was believed that all acids contained oxygen. The definition of acid has since been revised to not require oxygen in the molecular structure. Liquid O₂ and solid O₂ have a light blue color and both are highly paramagnetic. Liquid O₂ is usually obtained by the fractional distillation of liquid air. Liquid and solid O₃ (ozone) have a deeper color of blue. A recently discovered allotrope of oxygen, tetraoxygen (O₄), is a deep red solid that is created by pressurizing O₂ to the order of 20 GPa. Its properties are being studied for use in rocket fuels and similar applications, as it is a much more powerful oxidizer than either O₂ or O₃.

Applications

Liquid oxygen finds use as an oxidizer in rocket propulsion. Oxygen is essential to respiration, so oxygen supplementation has found use in medicine (as oxygen therapy). People who climb mountains or fly in airplanes sometimes have supplemental oxygen supplies (as air). Oxygen is used in welding (such as the oxyacetylene torch), and in the making of steel and methanol. Oxygen presents two absorption bands centered in the wavelengths 687 and 760 nanometers. Some scientists have proposed to use the measurement of the radiance coming from vegetation canopies in those oxygen bands to characterize plant health status from a satellite platform. This is because in those bands, it is possible to discriminate the vegetation's reflectance from the vegetation's fluorescence, which is much weaker. The measurement presents several technical difficulties due to the low signal to noise ratio and due to the vegetation's architecture, but it has been proposed as possibility to monitor the carbon cycle from satellite, thus in a global scale. Oxygen, as a mild euphoric, has a history of recreational use that extends into modern times. Oxygen bars can be seen at parties to this day. In the 19th century, oxygen was often mixed with nitrous oxide to promote an analgesic effect; indeed, such a mixture (Entonox) is commonly used in medicine today.

History

Oxygen was first discovered by Michał Sędziwój, Polish alchemist and philosopher in late 16th century. Sędziwój assumed the existence of oxygen by warming nitre (saltpeter). He thought of the gas given off as "the elixir of life". Oxygen was again discovered by the Swedish pharmacist Carl Wilhelm Scheele sometime before 1773, but the discovery was not published until after the independent discovery by Joseph Priestley on August 1, 1774, who called the gas dephlogisticated air (see phlogiston theory). Priestley published his discoveries in 1775 and Scheele in 1777; consequently Priestley is usually given the credit. It was named by Antoine Laurent Lavoisier after Priestley's publication in 1775.

Occurrence

Oxygen is the second most common component of the earth's atmosphere (20.947% by volume).

Compounds

Due to its electronegativity, oxygen forms chemical bonds with almost all other elements (which is the origin of the original definition of oxidation). The only elements to escape the possibility of oxidation are a few of the noble gases. The most famous of these oxides is dihydrogen monoxide, or water (H₂O). Other well known examples include compounds of carbon and oxygen, such as carbon dioxide (CO₂), alcohols (R-OH), aldehydes, (R-CHO), and carboxylic acids (R-COOH). Oxygenated radicals such as chlorates (ClO₃⁻), perchlorates (ClO₄⁻), chromates (CrO₄²⁻), dichromates (Cr₂O₇²⁻), permanganates (MnO₄⁻), and nitrates (NO₃⁻) are strong oxidizing agents in and of themselves. Many metals such as iron bond with oxygen atoms, iron (III) oxide (Fe₂O₃). Ozone (O₃) is formed by electrostatic discharge in the presence of molecular oxygen. A double oxygen molecule (O₂)₂ is known and is found as a minor component of liquid oxygen. Epoxides are ethers in which the oxygen atom is part of a ring of three atoms.

Isotopes

Oxygen has fifteen known isotopes with atomic masses ranging from 12 to 26. Three of them are stable and twelve are radioactive. The radioisotopes all have half lives of less than three minutes. The stable isotopes have mass numbers of 16, 17 and 18, of which oxygen-16 is the most common (over 99%).

Precautions

Oxygen can be toxic at elevated partial pressures (i.e. high relative concentrations). This is important in some forms of scuba diving, such as with a rebreather. Certain derivatives of oxygen, such as ozone (O₃), singlet oxygen, hydrogen peroxide, hydroxyl radicals and superoxide, are also highly toxic. The body has developed mechanisms to protect against these toxic species. For instance, the naturally-occurring glutathione can act as an antioxidant, as can bilirubin which is normally a breakdown product of hemoglobin. Highly concentrated sources of oxygen promote rapid combustion and therefore are fire and explosion hazards in the presence of fuels. This is true as well of compounds of oxygen such as chlorates, perchlorates, dichromates, etc. Compounds with a high oxidative potential can often cause chemical burns. The fire that killed the Apollo 1 crew on a test launchpad spread so rapidly because the pure oxygen atmosphere was at normal atmospheric pressure instead of the one third pressure that would be used during an actual launch. (See partial pressure.) Oxygen derivatives are prone to form free radicals, especially in metabolic processes. Because they can cause severe damage to cells and their DNA, they are thought to be related to cancer and aging.

References

- [http://periodic.lanl.gov/elements/8.html Los Alamos National Laboratory – Oxygen]
- [http://physics.nist.gov/cgi-bin/AtData/main_asd Nist atomic spectra database]
- [http://chartofthenuclides.com/default.html Nuclides and Isotopes Fourteenth Edition]: Chart of the Nuclides, General Electric Company, 1989

External links

- [http://www.priestleysociety.net Priestley Society, Dedicated to Joseph Priestley the man who discovered oxygen]
- [http://www.best-home-remedies.com/minerals/oxygen.htm Oxygen - Benefits, Deficiency Symptoms And Food Sources]
- [http://www.josephpriestley.info Joseph Priestley Information Website, about the man who discovered oxygen]
- [http://periodic.lanl.gov/elements/8.html Los Alamos National Laboratory – Oxygen]
- [http://www.webelements.com/webelements/elements/text/O/index.html WebElements.com – Oxygen]
- [http://education.jlab.org/itselemental/ele008.html It's Elemental – Oxygen]
- [http://members.tripod.com/tjaartdb0/html/oxygen_toxicity.html Oxygen Toxicity]
- [http://www.uigi.com/oxygen.html Oxygen (O2) Properties, Uses, Applications]
- [http://www.compchemwiki.org/index.php?title=Oxygen Computational Chemistry Wiki]
- [http://koti.mbnet.fi/antitz/dime/en Tests with liquid oxygen :-)] Category:Nonmetals Category:Chalcogens als:Sauerstoff ko:산소 ms:Oksigen ja:酸素 simple:Oxygen th:ออกซิเจน

1793

1793 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar).

Events

- January 2 - Russia and Prussia partition Poland
- January 9 - Jean-Pierre Blanchard becomes the first to fly in a balloon in the United States.
- January 21 - After being found guilty of treason by the French Convention, "Citizen Capet" ie. Louis XVI of France is guillotined.
- February 1 - France declares war on Great Britain, the Netherlands (see French Revolutionary Wars)
- February 12 - The Congress of the United States passes a law legally requiring the return of slaves escaping from slave states into free territory or states, the Fugitive Slave Act
- February 25 - George Washington holds the first Cabinet meeting as President of the United States.
- February 27 - The Giles resolutions are introduced to the United States House of Representatives asking the House to condemn Alexander Hamilton's handling of loans.
- March 1 - John Langdon becomes President Pro Tempore of the United States Senate until March 3
- March 5 - French troops are defeated by Austrian forces and Liège is recaptured
- March 7 - France declares war on Spain
- April 1 - Unsen volcano erupts in Japan and causes an earthquake. About 53.000 dead
- April 6 - Committee of Public Safety established in France with Georges Danton as its head.
- April 22 - George Washington signs the Neutrality Proclamation.
- May 31 - Regular troops under Francois Hanriet demand that the Girondins must be expelled from the national convention
- June 2 - Girondins overthrown
- June 10 - The Jardin des Plantes museum opened in Paris (a year later it would become the first public zoo).
- July 9 - Act Against Slavery passed in Upper Canada
- July 13 – Charlotte Corday kills Jean-Paul Marat in his bath
- July 22 - Alexander Mackenzie reaches the Pacific Ocean becoming the first Euro-American to complete a transcontinental crossing north of Mexico
- July 29 - John Graves Simcoe decides to build a fort and settlement at Toronto, having sailed into the bay there
- August 10 - Feast of Unity - Crowds in Paris burn monarchist emblems
- August 23 - Universal conscription in France
- September 5 - In France, the French National Convention votes to implement terror measures to repress French Revolutionary activities. The ensuing "Reign of Terror" will last until the spring of 1794 and causes death of 35,000-40,000 people.
- October 12 - The cornerstone of Old East, the oldest state university building in the United States, is laid in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, on the campus of the University of North Carolina. The 12th of October is now celebrated at the University as University Day.
- November 8 - In Paris, the French Revolutionary government opens the Louvre to the public as a museum
- October 16 - Execution of Marie Antoinette
- October 28 - Eli Whitney applied for a patent for his cotton gin, (the patent was granted the following March).
- October 31 - Execution of arrested Girondist leaders in France in a guillotine
- November 24 – French Revolutionary Calendar begins
- December 8 - Execution of Madame du Barry
- December 9- New York City's first daily newspaper, the American Minerva, is established by Noah Webster.
- December 17 - French forces under Napoleon capture Toulon from royalists and British troops

Unknown dates

- British admiralty begins to supply citrus juice to Navy ships to prevent scurvy.
- Claude Chappe presents his semaphore in France - 15 stations built within a year.
- In Philadelphia, Pennsylvania more than 4000 die from yellow fever
- Roman Catholicism banned in France.
- First Coalition against France formed.
- Holy Roman Empire declares war on France.
- First year of regular production for the United States Mint.
- Construction begins on the United States Capitol building.
- Niccolò Paganini debuts as a violin virtuoso at age 11.

Ongoing events

- French Revolution (1789-1799)
- French Revolutionary Wars (1792-1802)-First Coalition

Births

- January 3 - Lucretia Mott, American women's rights activist and abolitionist (d. 1880)
- March 2 - Sam Houston, President of the Republic of Texas (d. 1863)
- March 4 - Karl Lachmann, German philologist (d. 1851)
- April 19 - Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria (d. 1875)
- June 6 - Edward C. Delevan, American temperance movement leader (d. 1871)
- November 3 - Stephen F. Austin, American pioneer (d. 1836)

Deaths

- January 1 - Francesco Guardi, Italian painter (b. 1712)
- January 21 - King Louis XVI of France (executed) (b. 1754)
- February 1 - William Wildman Shute Barrington, British statesman (b. 1717)
- February 6 - Carlo Goldoni, Italian playwright (b. 1707)
- March 2 - Carl Gustaf Pilo, Swedish-born artist
- March 4 - Louis Jean Marie de Bourbon, duc de Penthièvre, French admiral (b. 1725)
- March 20 - William Murray, 1st Earl of Mansfield, Scottish judge and politician (b. 1705)
- March 26 - John Mudge, English physician and inventor (b. 1721)
- April 15 - Ignacije Szentmartony, Croatian Jesuit missionary and geographer (b. 1718)
- April 29 - Yechezkel Landau, Polish rabbi and Talmudist (b. 1713)
- April 29 -

Priestley Medal

Recent recipients

See also

External links

Priestley Medal

Recent recipients

See also

External links

Chemistry

Introduction

Subdisciplines of chemistry

Fundamental concepts

Nomenclature

Atoms

Elements

Compounds

Molecules

Ions

Bonding

States of matter

Chemical reactions

Quantum chemistry

Laws

History of chemistry

Etymology

See also

External links

Further reading

1922

Events

Exact month/day of event unknown

Births

January-March

April-June

July to December

Deaths

Marriages

January-March

April-June

July to December

Nobel Prizes

Heads of state in 1922

See also

Oxygen

Characteristics

Applications

History

Occurrence

Compounds

Isotopes

Precautions

See also

References

External links

1793

Events

Unknown dates

Ongoing events

Births

Deaths