1901-1994

American Chemist

In 1954 Linus Pauling was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his research into the nature of the chemical bond and its application to the elucidation of the structure of complex substances. Pauling's concepts and experiments made it possible for chemists to understand the forces that held proteins together. His classic text The Nature of the Chemical Bond (1939) remains a model of clarity. In 1962 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his campaign against the use, testing, and proliferation of nuclear weapons and the very idea of waging war as a way of solving international conflicts.

Using the prestige inherent in his status as a Nobel laureate, Pauling was able to attract attention to the dangers of the radioactive fallout that was produced by the testing of nuclear weapons. The...