In his own eyes he was a natural philosopher, part of an extinct species of researcher. But in the world of science, Erwin Chargaff was a pioneer in biochemistry whose demonstration that genes were comprised of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) , was one of the most fundamental discoveries in the study of heredity. His accomplishments ranged over much of the field of biochemistry, including the study of lipids of microorganisms , blood coagulation, and the use of radioactive isotopes in the study of metabolism.

Chargaff was born on August 11, 1905 in Czernowiz, Austria, which at the time was the provincial capital of the Austrian monarchy. Although he considered his education at Vienna's Maximilians Gymnasium excellent in quality, he found it limited in scope. While his parents were not wealthy, having lost their money to an inflated economy, Chargaff successfully earned his doctoral degree in chemistry at the University of Vienna's Spath's Institute...