Meet a Scientist

She earned Nobel Prizes in two scientific fields. Her careful measurements helped establish that radioactivity was an atomic property.

Education: University of Paris; research with Pierre Curie.

At 23, Ball developed a chemical method that made the oil’s active agents more usable as an injectable treatment. The technique later became known as the Ball Method.

Education: University of Washington; master’s degree in chemistry from the College of Hawaiʻi in 1915.

His experiments used extremely short laser pulses to follow molecular changes. Think of a camera fast enough to catch a reaction in the act. He received the 1999 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

Her research also examined coal and viruses. Her work shows how powerful measurements can reveal structures too small to see.

Education: Cambridge chemistry; doctorate on coal research.

John Glenn asked her to check the electronic computer calculations for his orbital flight. Her mathematical care helped build confidence in spaceflight.

Education: West Virginia State College; mathematics and French.

With Josef Pikl, he achieved the first total synthesis of physostigmine. He later developed industrial processes for steroid compounds while confronting racial barriers in science and business.

A tool that began with bacterial defenses became a way to edit DNA. Her story connects basic research with questions about responsibility.

Education: Pomona College; Harvard doctorate.

She investigated traditional sources using experimental methods. Changing extraction conditions helped preserve the active compound.

Education: Peking University Medical School; pharmacology.

A chemical used near the ground can have consequences high in the atmosphere. Molina connected molecular reactions with a planet-sized environmental problem and shared the 1995 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

She also studied penicillin and insulin. Patient analysis of diffraction patterns revealed how atoms were arranged.

Education: Oxford; Cambridge doctorate.

Some DNA sequences can change position in the genome. Her long-term observations challenged a static view of genetic material.

Education: Cornell University; botany doctorate.

DNA needs maintenance, too. Sancar studied the molecular machinery that repairs damage, including damage caused by ultraviolet light. He shared the 2015 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for mechanistic studies of DNA repair.

Her notes included a method for calculating Bernoulli numbers. She imagined that a computing machine might handle symbols as well as numbers.

Education: Private mathematical study and collaboration with Charles Babbage.

Long observation helped reveal individual animals and complex social behavior. Her later work connects research, conservation, and young people.

Education: Cambridge doctorate in ethology.

Why do atoms connect in particular ways? Pauling used ideas about electrons to help explain molecular structure. His bonding research earned the 1954 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

Her precise experiments tested a fundamental assumption about symmetry. Good instruments and careful controls can change an entire field.

Education: National Central University; Berkeley doctorate.

Battery chemistry is a team effort: the choice of electrode material changes what a battery can do. Goodenough shared the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with M. Stanley Whittingham and Akira Yoshino for developing lithium-ion batteries.