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Linus Pauling…the man

June 23, 2011 by admin Leave a Comment

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Linus Pauling was a chemist, of Bio-chemistry and quantum chemistry, he wasn’t as famous as Albert Einstein but in the science world he was famous. Dr. Pauling had many achievements in life, he won 2 Nobel prizes, one for Chemistry and 1 for Peace. He was also into the effectiveness of Vitamin C, that is was the cure for a lot of known diseases, such as the common cold and cancer.

Dr. Pauling also founded the Linus Pauling Institute of Science and medicine in 1973, and Invented the Pauling Heart therapy, which was a method of helping your heart without the use of drugs. He was also one of the first American chemist to master the x-ray diffraction. He is also in the California hall of fame, where he was inducted in 2008. Not only was he a chemist he was an educator at various colleges, Author and Peace activist. Science was his life and wanted to make things in the science world a better place.

Not only was dr. Pauling a chemist but he was also an Author and peace activist. He also that that the world would be a better place if there was no war involved. He influences a lot of people in the science field, with his hard work and dedication to it, he set out to research, that vitamin c was the cure for anything that was ailing you. He also set an example to anyone one that if you workhad and have dedication that you can do anything you set out to do. He lived to be 93 yearsold, that has to say something about his life.

Filed Under: Linus Pauling Tagged With: Albert Einstein, Linus Pauling, Vitamin C

Celebrities With Sickle Cell Anemia

May 2, 2011 by admin Leave a Comment

One of the great contributors to chemistry and associated research is undoubtedly Linus Pauling. He had a great interest throughout his career in various chemicals and their relation to structure. He also was heavily involved in bilogical chemicals around the mid-1930′s and did much of the research associated with discovering sickle cell anemia. Today, the blood disease is still around and incurable. Like many blood diseases, there are treatments available for sickle cell. Sickle cell is most predominant among African Americans going by percentage of population affected. You may even recognize some of these celebrities who have publicly discussed having sickle cell anemia.

1.) Larenz Tate- Mr. Tate is a hollywood actor who has appeared in such films as Dead Presidents and Menace II Society. In 2007, Mr. Tate released videos associating Black History Month with sickle cell anemia in order to provide awareness to the black community. He continues to act in hollywood, most recently on the televisions series Justified and Rescue Me.

2.) Miles Davis- Mr. Davis is perhaps the greatest jazz musician who has ever lived. The amazing trumpet player learned of his affliction with sickle cell in 1961. Despite the nature of the disease to make the afflicted feel ill, he was able to record music until about the mid-1970′s as well as conduct various tours in support of albums,

3.) Prodigy- A rapper for the group Mobb Deep, Prodigy has openly rapped about the disease since the earliest Mobb Deep records. He provides awareness of sickle cell not only in his records, but also by going into the community and raising awareness of the disease.

Filed Under: Health, Linus Pauling Tagged With: Linus Pauling, Miles Davis, Sickle-cell disease

The Legacy of Linus Pauling

December 30, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Linus Pauling is best known for his scientific discoveries and twice winning the Nobel Peace prize, but what about all the ways society has chosen to memorialize him after his death? As usual with a departed public figure, there are streets and buildings named after Pauling. But Pauling has some quirky legacies as well, including a psychedelic rock band called The Linus Pauling Quartet. Below are some of the many ways America remembers Linus Pauling.

1. Recognition by the scientific community. The legacy Pauling himself would likely be most proud of is the inclusion on a list of the 20 greatest scientists, which the magazine New Scientist released. It’s interesting to note that the only other scientist from the 20th century was Albert Einstein. Also, renowned scientist Francis Crick in 1986 recognized Pauling as the “father of molecular biology.”

2. Education. When school children learn about chemistry, they don’t just learn about the periodic table of elements. They learn about the history of science. Naturally, Pauling’s work on chemical bonding, the alpha helix, and electronegativity would be included in their chemistry textbooks.

3. An Institute named after him. The Linus Pauling Institute researches disease and its molecular basis, examining the role of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients.

4. Geographical references. There is a Pauling Street in Foothill Ranch, California; a Linus Pauling Lecture Hall at Caltech University; a Linus Pauling Middle School in Corvallis, Oregon; and an airport called Pauling Field in Condon, Oregon (where Pauling spent his childhood years).

5. Postage. The United States Postal Service released stamps in 2008 commemorating Pauling, along with several other influential scientists.

6. Fame. Pauling was inducted into the California Hall of Fame in 2008.

7. Works of fiction. Pauling even appears in a novel called Visibility by Boris Starling.

While Pauling is remembered in these ways and more, his true legacy is science itself, which would not be the same without his work.

Filed Under: Linus Pauling Tagged With: California Hall of Fame, Francis Crick, Linus Pauling

Linus Pauling’s Five Rules

December 27, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Crystals are amazing. They seem to magically grow, creating beautiful shapes and colors. Societies have been fascinated with crystals for centuries; this is why there are so many child’s “Grow Your Own Crystal!” sets on the market. Linus Pauling shared that same fascination, so much that he dedicated years of his life to studying and teaching about crystal formation.

As a chemistry professor at Caltech University, Pauling spent much of his time doing research on crystals. He authored over 50 research papers during that time, the basis of which later morphed into five key rules regarding crystal formation. While crystal formation may seem unimportant in the scheme of science, Pauling’s Five Rules are important in the field because they laid a foundation for future scientists.

Here are Pauling’s Five Rules, in almost layman’s terms:

1. Using a mathematical formula outlined by Pauling, it is possible to determine the distance between the positively charged ion (cation) and the negatively charged ion (anion) in crystals.

2. As long as the electrostatic bonds of a ionic chemical bond (when all added together) equal the charge of that anion, then it will be a stable chemical structure.

3. In crystals, when two polyhedra share edges or faces (but interestingly, not corners), the stability of the crystal goes down.

4. When crystals have a number of different positively charged ions, then the ones with lots of chemical bonds and few neighbors will often appear as different polyhedron types (octahedron or tetrahedron, for example).

5. A crystal has only a handful of different elements; thus, repetition is common, which is why crystals look the way they do.

While scientists today have suggested updates or revisions to the Five Rules, they largely remain proven and are accepted by the scientific community. Linus Pauling’s painstaking crystal research put him far ahead of his time.

Filed Under: Chemistry, Health, Linus Pauling Tagged With: California Institute of Technology, Crystal, Linus Pauling, Pauling's rules

Linus Pauling and Sickle Cell Anemia

December 23, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

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In 1949, a research article was published in Science magazine. Dozens of papers are published every month, so the publication in itself is no big deal. What made this one paper special was that it announced a groundbreaking discovery: Sickle Cell Anemia is caused by a genetic protein deficiency.

A group of four scientists contributed to the research that backed this paper; notably, the renowned chemist and peace activist Linus Pauling was one of these scientists. It’s no wonder he is the only person ever to have received a Nobel Peace Prize in two different fields. Pauling was all over the place!

First, a short primer on Sickle Cell Anemia: it’s a genetic type of anemia (iron deficiency) characterized by sickle-shaped red blood cells, hence the name “Sickle Cell” Anemia.

At the time of the discovery that Pauling and his colleagues made, this research was the first time anybody had proven that Sickle Cell Anemia could be caused by proteins with abnormalities.

The group made this discovery by examining the red blood cells of people with Sickle Cell Anemia, as well as people without the disease. They saw that those with the disease had both the normal form of hemoglobin and a strange form of hemoglobin.

Prior to this discovery, those in the medical field had identified Sickle Cell Anemia as a disease, but they had no solid explanation for what exactly caused the red blood cells to form in the characteristic crescent shape.

This discovery is not only significant in the study of Sickle Cell Anemia, but in the field of genetic disease. By isolating the protein that causes red blood cells to become sickle-shaped, Pauling and his colleagues set the stage for the future study of genetic and hereditary disease, which is a huge field of study in today’s scientific landscape.

Filed Under: Health, Linus Pauling Tagged With: Linus Pauling, Nobel Peace Prize, Sickle-cell disease

Prescription for Health

December 18, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

The Linus Pauling Institute, founded by renowned scientist Linus Pauling, studies the role of nutrients on health. Naturally, they are experts on the topic of staying healthy. Their “Prescription for Health” contains their top recommendations; below are their top 10 lifestyle tips.

1. Eat your fruits and veggies. Get at least five servings every day (potatoes are not considered a veggie for these purposes, so no cheating and counting french fries as a veggie serving!). But don’t limit yourself at five. The latest recommendations actually have nine servings as the optimal amount, but that’s hard to aim for if you don’t even get five servings daily. Baby steps.

2. Include omega-3 fatty acids in your diet. Easy ways to do this: flax seeds, walnuts, canola or flax seed oil.

3. When cooking with oil, don’t use saturated fats. Try to stick with olive oil, which is heart-friendly.

4. Avoid other saturated fats. This includes butter, full-fat dairy products, most meats, and shortening.

5. Reduce simple carbohydrates. This includes white flour, white rice, and potatoes. Replace with whole grain counterparts.

6. Reduce sugar intake. Common culprits are soda, cereals (Lucky Charms, anyone?), and obviously, candy.

7. Keep your weight healthy. If your BMI is over 25, you’re at a much higher risk of chronic diseases. Also, it’s been found that the more abdominal fat you have, the higher your risk of disease.

8. Exercise at least 30 minutes a day at moderate intensity. Incorporate weight training two days a week.

9. Quit smoking!

10. Drink alcohol. Actually, a small amount on a daily basis has been linked to reducing the risk of heart disease. However, this same amount has been linked to an increased risk of cancer. If your family doesn’t have a cancer history, keep your drinking down to one a day for women and two a day for men.

Filed Under: Health, Vitamins Tagged With: Linus Pauling, Linus Pauling Institute, Lucky Charms

Get Your Vitamins!

December 15, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Since Linus Pauling was considered a pioneer of Vitamin C research, it’s fitting that his Institute would offer free vitamin recommendations to the general public. Their “prescription for health” is meant for healthy people as a way to prevent common disease like cancer or heart disease. Below are the Institute’s top recommendations for vitamins and minerals.

Take a multivitamin supplement daily. Pick one with a recommended daily allowance (RDA) of 100% of most minerals and vitamins.

Believe it or not, iron is not always necessary in your multivitamin, as it can interfere with the absorption of the other nutrients. The Institute recommends that all men go without iron, and postmenopausal women take multivitamins without it as well. For all others, iron should be taken separately from the multivitamin.

The Vitamin A content of your multivitamin should be, at most, 2,500 IU. However, if the Vitamin A comes in the form of beta carotene, the amount should be 5,000 IU at most. The reasoning behind this recommendation is that beta carotene is only absorbed 50% by the body.

When it comes to Vitamin C, the substance that Linus Pauling is famous for studying, the Institute recommends at least 400 mg per day. If you’re taking a multivitamin and eating at least five servings of fruits and veggies on a daily basis, you should be getting enough.

The body naturally produces Vitamin D from sunlight, but doctors recommend taking it in supplement form instead. 2,000 IU is a good amount of Vitamin D daily.

Vitamin E should be taken as an extra supplement. The best source is naturally occurring alpha tocopherol; always take this supplement with a meal.

Calcium is a tough one, because it’s impossible to get 100% of the daily value into a multivitamin. Most people do not get enough calcium in their diets alone. Add a calcium pill to your routine if your total intake isn’t at least 1,000 mg. Take with a meal.

Filed Under: Vitamins Tagged With: Linus Pauling, Multivitamin, Vitamin

How Much Vitamin C is the Right Amount?

December 13, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Linus Pauling is widely considered one of recent history’s foremost experts on Vitamin C. Why, then, does his daily recommended value of Vitamin C differ from that of the Linus Pauling Institute (an institute which Linus Pauling himself started)? To put it simply, it all boils down to theory versus solid research.

For any pioneer in a scientific field, research all starts with a hypothesis. Pauling didn’t yet have research to back it up, but his hypothesis was that Vitamin C is necessary for the body to function properly; specifically, the immune system needs high levels Vitamin C to protect the body. He recommended 2,000 mg per day on the high end, but recognizing that would be tough in the 1970′s when he first made that recommendation, he said that at least 250 mg daily would be acceptable.

Pauling got the ball rolling. Now with several more decades of research to back their claims, the Institute recommends differing daily doses of Vitamin C depending on age, health condition, and gender. The Institute has a comprehensive chart showing the right amount of Vitamin C for all, from infant through old age. A healthy non-smoking adult female would take 75 mg per day, for example. But according to these researchers, 400 mg is still the optimum amount for all cells to be saturated in a healthy person.

That 400 mg daily dose is best for people whose immune systems are compromised or who are looking to fight specific diseases like coronary heart disease or diabetes.

While it may seem that the Linus Pauling Institute and Linus Pauling himself are at odds regarding Vitamin C, it’s really more of an evolution that has taken place. Surely Pauling would agree with the new recommendation by the Institute, because he based all his theories on hard science where it was available.

Filed Under: Health, Vitamins Tagged With: Linus Pauling, Linus Pauling Institute, Vitamin C

Linus Pauling Biography

December 3, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Linus Pauling, born Linus Carl Pauling on February 28, 1901 in Portland, Oregon, is known to be one of the most famous chemists. He was even awarded several Nobel Prizes for his work in chemistry and is said to be the best chemist of the 20th century.

After moving several times when he was young, Pauling went to elementary and high school in Oregon and began attending the Oregon State College in 1917. There, he received his Bachelors of Science in chemical engineering in 1922. In 1925 he received his Ph.D. in chemistry with minors in mathematics and physics.

He spent his life studying atoms and molecules. He studied the works of several physicists and became interested in quantum mechanics. In 1926 he traveled to Europe in order to gain more knowledge of physics. There, he spent two years devoting his life to how quantum mechanics relates to atoms and molecules.

Pauling also had a hand in molecular medicine and medical research. In November of 1949 he, along with three others, published and article in the journal “Science”. This article gave proof of human diseases caused by an abnormal protein. Sickle cell anemia became the first disease to be recognized at the molecular level. He went on to publish more articles in the journal “Science”, and then began studying vitamin C. He experimented on himself by taking three grams of vitamin C per day, and was excited by his results.

It was in 1923 when he married Ava Helen Miller. Together they had four children, Linus Carl Jr., Peter Jeffress, Linda Helen, and Edward Crellin. They also had thirteen grandchildren.

Pauling died at the age of 93 on August 19, 1994. The cause of death was prostate cancer. A grave is marked for him in Oswego Pioneer Cemetery in Lake Oswego, Oregon.

Filed Under: Linus Pauling Tagged With: Linus Pauling, Oregon, Oregon State University

Linus Pauling Career

December 1, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Linus Pauling lived from February 28, 1901 to August 19, 1994. He was an American chemist, author, and educator. He was known to be one of the most famous chemists, and one of the most important chemists of the 1900′s.

Pauling worked in the fields of quantum chemistry and molecular biology where he became one of the first chemists to study in those fields. He was also one of four people to win multiple Nobel Prizes, one of two people awarded two Nobel Prizes in separate fields, and the only person awarded two unshared prizes.

Pauling began studying quantum mechanics while attending Oregon Stat University. He later traveled to Europe to study under the German physicist, Arnold Sommerfeld, Australian physicist, Erwin Schrodinger, and Danish physicist, Niel Bohr. Pauling was interested in how quantum mechanics applied to electronic structure of atoms and molecules, which was his area of study. Pauling devoted his two year European trip to his work and made it the focus of his research.

Pauling took the position of an assistant professor at Caltech in theoretical chemistry in 1927. He spent his time there studying quantum mechanics and how that relates to atoms and molecules. He published close to 50 papers in the five years he spent there and created five rules, which we know as Pauling’s rules. By 1930 he became a professor.

Pauling spent a part of his life learning about medicine. He published several articles in the journal “Science”, which helped explain diseases caused by abnormal proteins. He also studied how vitamin C can prevent colds. In his study, he took three grams of vitamin C every day and the experiment produced positive results.

It is said that he is one of the greatest chemists the world has ever seen. His multiple awards and fame in chemistry prove that to be true.

Filed Under: Linus Pauling Tagged With: Linus Pauling, Niel Bohr, Nobel Prize