James Kendall (chemist) facts for kids
James Pickering Kendall (born July 30, 1889, died June 14, 1978) was an important British chemist. He was known for his studies on how chemicals behave in solutions. He also taught chemistry at famous universities and wrote several books.
Life Story
Kendall was born in Chobham, a town in Surrey, England. His father, William Henry Kendall, was a soldier. James went to the local village school. Later, he attended Farnham Grammar School.
From 1907 to 1910, he studied at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. He earned two degrees there, a Bachelor of Science (BSc) and a Master of Arts (MA). In 1912, he received a special scholarship. This allowed him to go to Sweden. There, he worked with a famous scientist named Svante Arrhenius. They studied "electrolytes," which are substances that conduct electricity when dissolved in water.
In 1913, Kendall became a Professor of Chemistry at Columbia University in New York. During World War I, he served in the United States Naval Reserve. He helped with chemical defense, working to protect soldiers from harmful gases.
In 1927, he was chosen as a Fellow of the Royal Society of London. This is a very old and respected group of top scientists in the United Kingdom. They elect leading researchers as members.
In 1926, he moved to be a Professor of Chemistry at New York University. Soon after, in 1928, he returned to Scotland. He became the Professor of Chemistry at the University of Edinburgh.
In 1929, he was also elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. This is another important science group, based in Scotland. He held many important jobs there. He was the Society's Secretary, General Secretary, Vice President, and even President from 1949 to 1954.
In 1938, Kendall was invited to give the famous Royal Institution Christmas Lectures. These lectures are a series of science talks for young people. His lectures were titled Young Chemists and Great Discoveries.
In 1915, he married Alice Tyldesley. She passed away in 1955. James Kendall retired in 1959. He died in Edinburgh in 1978. He was survived by his second wife, Jane Bain Steven, and children from his first marriage. One of his sons, James Tyldesley Kendall, also became a scientist.
James Kendall is even a character in an opera! The Scottish composer Julian Wagstaff wrote an opera called Breathe Freely. The opera's name comes from one of Kendall's own books.
Books Published
James Kendall wrote and helped write several books. These books helped explain chemistry and science to others.
- At Home Among the Atoms (1929)
- Smith's Introductory College Chemistry (revised 1938)
- Breathe Freely! The Truth About Poison Gas (1938) - This book was very popular and reprinted several times.
- Young Chemists and Great Discoveries (1939)
- Humphry Davy "Pilot" of Penzance (1954) - This book was about the famous chemist Humphry Davy.
- Michael Faraday, Man of Simplicity (1955) - This book was about another important scientist, Michael Faraday.
