Scientists / Chemistry
ライナス・ポーリング
US 1901-02-28 ~ 1994-08-19
Twentieth-century American quantum chemist and peace activist
Explained the nature of the chemical bond and won Nobel Prizes in both Chemistry and Peace
The only person to receive two unshared Nobel Prizes
American quantum chemist and peace activist born in 1901. Won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1954) for work on chemical bonds and the Nobel Peace Prize (1962), the only person to win two unshared Nobel Prizes.
What You Can Learn
Pauling's maxim about having many ideas to find good ones speaks directly to brainstorming and rapid prototyping in product development. His dual career as scientist and activist shows that technical expertise carries social responsibility. And the vitamin C controversy illustrates the reputational risk of advocacy beyond one's evidence base. His dual Nobel, spanning chemistry and peace, demonstrates that scientific authority carries weight in public policy, a reminder that researchers can be agents of social change.
Words That Resonate
The best way to have a good idea is to have lots of ideas.
Facts are the air of scientists. Without them you can never fly.
I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start.
Life & Legacy
Linus Pauling is the only individual to have received two unshared Nobel Prizes: the Chemistry Prize in 1954 for elucidating the nature of the chemical bond and the Peace Prize in 1962 for his campaign against nuclear weapons testing.
Born in 1901 in Portland, Oregon, Pauling studied chemical engineering at Oregon Agricultural College and earned his doctorate at Caltech in 1925. He then traveled to Europe, absorbing the new quantum mechanics from Sommerfeld, Bohr, and Schrodinger.
His seminal work applied quantum mechanics to chemistry. The Nature of the Chemical Bond (1939) explained how atoms share electrons to form molecules, introducing concepts such as resonance and hybridization. The book became one of the most cited scientific texts of the twentieth century.
Pauling also made important contributions to biology. He demonstrated that sickle-cell anemia is caused by a molecular abnormality in hemoglobin, coining the term "molecular disease." He proposed the alpha-helix structure of proteins, confirmed by X-ray crystallography. His pursuit of the DNA structure, however, was overtaken by Watson and Crick in 1953.
After the atomic bombings of Japan, Pauling became a vocal opponent of nuclear weapons and atmospheric testing. His petition, signed by over eleven thousand scientists, contributed to the 1963 Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. The Nobel Peace Prize recognized this activism.
In later years his advocacy of megadose vitamin C therapy drew controversy and skepticism from the medical community. Pauling died in 1994, leaving a dual legacy as a transformative chemist and a committed public intellectual.
Expert Perspective
Among scientists, Pauling bridged quantum physics and chemistry, establishing the field of quantum chemistry. His work on the chemical bond unified physical and chemical perspectives on molecular structure. The dual Nobel distinction is unmatched. His incorrect DNA model and late-career vitamin advocacy show even exceptional scientists can overreach.