John Simons (chemist) facts for kids
John Philip Simons, born on April 20, 1934, is a British scientist who studies physical chemistry. He is famous for his work on how light affects chemicals (called photochemistry). He also studied how molecules move and react, and how to look at tiny parts of living things using light (called spectroscopy). He was a professor at the University of Nottingham and later at the University of Oxford.
School and Learning
Simons went to the University of Cambridge and finished his first degree in 1955. He then earned his PhD, which is a very high university degree, also from Cambridge. His teacher for his PhD was a famous scientist named Ronald George Wreyford Norrish.
His Work Life
Simons started his career at the University of Birmingham in 1960. He worked there as a researcher and then became a lecturer, which is like a teacher at a university. Later, he became a professor of photochemistry in 1979.
In 1981, he moved to the University of Nottingham to become a professor of physical chemistry. Then, in 1993, he was given a special job at the University of Oxford as the Dr. Lee's Professor of Chemistry. He stopped working in 1999.
What He Studied
Simons' early research looked at how molecules break apart when light shines on them. This is called "photodissociation." He used special equipment to study how these reactions happened very quickly. He was one of the first to use lasers to watch molecules collide in 3D. This helped scientists understand how chemical reactions really work.
Later, at Oxford, he used different types of lasers to study the shapes of important molecules found in living things. These included carbohydrates (like sugars), peptides (parts of proteins), and neurotransmitters (chemicals that help our brains work). He wanted to understand how these molecules are shaped and how they interact with each other.
Awards and Special Recognitions
Simons received many awards for his important work.
- In 1979, he became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry. This means he was recognized as a leading chemist.
- He also became a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1989. This is a very high honor for scientists in the UK.
- He gave a special lecture called the Humphry Davy Lecture in 2001.
- He received the Davy Medal in 2007, which is another important award from the Royal Society.
- Other awards include the Tilden Prize (1982–3), Chemical Dynamics Award (1993), Polanyi Medal (1996), Spiers Memorial Award (1999), and Liversidge Award (2007).
- In 2002, he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Birmingham. This is a special degree given to honor someone's achievements.
- In 2005, a science journal called Molecular Physics published a special edition to celebrate his 70th birthday.
