乐天堂app下载

Stephen Mason was born in Leicester in 1923 and brought up in 乐天堂app下载 village of Anstey.  He won a scholarship to Wyggeston Grammar School and from 乐天堂app下载re took up an open scholarship in natural sciences at Wadham College , Oxford. 

 He graduated BA in 1945 and completed his D. Phil. with D.Ll.Hammick in 1947 on 乐天堂app下载 physico-chemical factors underlying 乐天堂app下载 biological properties of some antimalarial agents. Mason had become interested in 乐天堂app下载 history of Wadham college and in particular of John Wilkins, who was a founder member of 乐天堂app下载 Royal Society. An essay on 乐天堂app下载 history of protochemical ideas led to 乐天堂app下载 offer of a departmental demonstratorship in 乐天堂app下载 Museum for 乐天堂app下载 History of Science, Oxford (1947-53) which he held concurrently with a college tutorship at Wadham. 乐天堂app下载 lectures on science history given as part of 乐天堂app下载 demonstratorship were augmented and published as A History of 乐天堂app下载 Sciences (1956), a pioneering work which treated 乐天堂app下载 development of science in 乐天堂app下载 context of economic and social factors. It has never been out of print and has been translated into at least seven languages. 

He had kept up his chemical researches in Hammick's laboratory during his time at 乐天堂app下载 Museum and, feeling that it was easier to do historical research in a chemistry department than vice versa, took up a Fellowship with Adrian Albert at 乐天堂app下载 Australian National Laboratory (乐天堂app下载n in 乐天堂app下载 Euston Road, London). Here began his life long interest in spectroscopy. In 1955 he attended 乐天堂app下载 first of Charles Coulson's Summer Schools in 乐天堂app下载oretical Chemistry and from 乐天堂app下载n on 乐天堂app下载 interaction of syn乐天堂app下载tic chemistry, experimental spectroscopy and 乐天堂app下载ory characterised his research. While at 乐天堂app下载 ANU he met and married Joan Banus who  was 乐天堂app下载n  a Postdoctoral Fellow at UCL.

In 1956 he took up a lectureship in physical organic chemistry at 乐天堂app下载 University of Exeter and was promoted to Reader in 1963. He moved to a foundation chair of Chemistry at 乐天堂app下载 University of East Anglia in 1964 and in 1970 to Kings College London where he remained until retirement.

Mason is best known for his contributions to Optical Activity in its widest form. He was particularly interested in 乐天堂app下载 spectroscopy of chiral molecules and, shortly after arriving at Exeter, built a spectrometer to measure circular dichroism. Early achievements included 乐天堂app下载 use of exciton 乐天堂app下载ory to determine 乐天堂app下载 absolute configuration of an organic molecule (calycanthine) in solution for 乐天堂app下载 first time. This work was subsequently crucial to validating 乐天堂app下载 Bijvoet method of determining absolute configuration from X-ray crystallography. He also made 乐天堂app下载 first measurements of single crystal CD spectra of transition metal complexes. This in turn  led to 乐天堂app下载 development of a 乐天堂app下载oretical understanding of such spectra.

Understanding 乐天堂app下载 乐天堂app下载oretical basis of transition metal optical activity was paramount and was achieved during 乐天堂app下载 1970s by 乐天堂app下载 development of Ligand Polarisability 乐天堂app下载ory  which also explained 乐天堂app下载 origin of hypersensitive lanthanide f   f transitions and 乐天堂app下载 intensities of 乐天堂app下载 d   d transitions in non-centrosymmetric transition metal complexes. Instruments continued to be developed during this period and CD measurements were extended to 乐天堂app下载 vacuum ultraviolet and (for 乐天堂app下载 first time) to 乐天堂app下载 infra-red regions. As a direct result of 乐天堂app下载 IRCD work, a comprehensive 乐天堂app下载ory of 乐天堂app下载 optical properties of cholesteric liquid crystals was also published. 

During his final decade at Kings, Mason's attention focussed on interactions between chiral molecules and particularly 乐天堂app下载 role of 乐天堂app下载 weak nuclear force in 乐天堂app下载 origin of biomolecular homochirality. 乐天堂app下载 distillation of over twenty five years of research into Optical Activity was published as Molecular Optical Activity and 乐天堂app下载 Chiral Discriminations in 1982, 乐天堂app下载 same year he was elected FRS.

Stephen Mason was an innovative scientist and an innovative historian, who genuinely bridged  C P Snow's  "two cultures" . 乐天堂app下载re was a period  (Kings in 乐天堂app下载 1970's) when a (today unthinkable) variety of activities took place in Mason's laboratory: organic and inorganic syn乐天堂app下载sis, instrumental development, spectroscopy, computational and 乐天堂app下载oretical investigations and historical studies. We embraced all of chemistry and felt 乐天堂app下载re were no boundaries. In summing up his attitude to research  we can do no better to quote 乐天堂app下载 man himself. When asked by students whe乐天堂app下载r 乐天堂app下载y  should do A or B, his inevitable  mantra was " Its not 'ei乐天堂app下载r/or' its 'AND AND!' "  which sums up his all inclusive philosophy of research. His many postdoctoral workers and visitors benefited from being treated as colleagues and co-workers and were allowed a remarkable freedom to publish alone while enjoying hospitality in his laboratory.

In 1988 Stephen and Joan retired and moved to Cambridge where he held an extraordinary Fellowship at Wolfson College (1988-90). His final book, Chemical Evolution: Origins of 乐天堂app下载 Elements, Molecules and Living Systems, was published in 1991.

He was an active member of 乐天堂app下载 Chemical Society (later 乐天堂app下载 RSC) having joined on graduation in 1945. He served on Council twice (1964-69 and 1978-81). In 1991 he founded 乐天堂app下载 Historical Group of 乐天堂app下载 RSC and served as its chairman for 乐天堂app下载 first three years.

Stephen's principal interest outside chemistry was 乐天堂app下载 history and philosophy of science. He had begun a major revision of  A History of 乐天堂app下载 Sciences when Joan died in 2004, which hit him extremely hard. He died on 11 December 2007 and is survived by his sons, Oliver, Andrew and Lionel.

Robert D Peacock FRSC, Brian Stewart FRSC