Roald Hoffmann facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Roald Hoffmann
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Hoffmann in 2009
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| Born |
Roald Safran
July 18, 1937 Złoczów, Second Polish Republic
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| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Columbia University Harvard University |
| Known for | Woodward–Hoffmann rules Extended Hückel method Isolobal principle |
| Spouse(s) |
Eva Börjesson
(m. 1960) |
| Children | 2 |
| Awards |
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| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Theoretical Chemistry |
| Institutions | Cornell University |
| Thesis | Theory of Polyhedral Molecules: Second Quantization and Hypochromism in Helices. (1962) |
| Doctoral advisor |
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| Doctoral students | Jing Li |
| Other notable students | Jeffrey R. Long (undergraduate), Karen Goldberg (undergraduate) |
Roald Hoffmann (born Roald Safran on July 18, 1937) is a famous Polish-American theoretical chemist. He won the 1981 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his important work in understanding how chemical reactions happen. Besides being a scientist, he is also a talented writer who has published plays and poetry. He is currently a professor emeritus at Cornell University.
Contents
Early Life and Survival
Hiding During World War II
Roald Hoffmann was born in Złoczów, a town in what was then Poland (now Ukraine). His family was Polish-Jewish. When Germany took over Poland, his family was forced into a labor camp. His father, who knew a lot about the local area, was a valuable prisoner.
As the situation became very dangerous, Hoffmann's family managed to escape. With the help of a Ukrainian neighbor, Mykola Dyuk, Roald, his mother, two uncles, and an aunt hid for 18 months. They stayed in the attic and a storeroom of a local schoolhouse from January 1943 to June 1944. Roald was only 5 to 7 years old at the time.
His father stayed at the labor camp but was later killed by the Germans. While in hiding, Roald's mother taught him to read and helped him learn geography from textbooks. He remembers this time as being surrounded by love. In 1944, they moved to Kraków, where his mother remarried. Roald and his mother then took on his new stepfather's last name, Hoffmann.
Most of Roald's other family members did not survive the war. In 1949, he and his mother moved to the United States. In 2006, Roald Hoffmann visited his childhood hiding place in Zolochiv and found the attic still there. In 2009, he helped build a monument in Zolochiv to remember the victims of the Holocaust.
Personal Life and Education
Roald Hoffmann married Eva Börjesson in 1960, and they have two children, Hillel Jan and Ingrid Helena.
School and College Years
Hoffmann finished high school in New York City in 1955. He then went to Columbia University, where he earned his first college degree in 1958. He continued his studies at Harvard University, getting his master's degree in 1960 and his Ph.D. (doctorate) in 1962. For his Ph.D., he studied how molecules are shaped and how their electrons behave.
While at Harvard, he worked with two important scientists, Martin Gouterman and William Lipscomb, who later won a Nobel Prize. Together, they helped develop a way to understand the electrons in molecules, called the Extended Hückel method. In 1965, Hoffmann joined Cornell University, where he has been a professor ever since.
Amazing Scientific Discoveries
Roald Hoffmann's scientific work focuses on the tiny world of molecules. He studies how molecules are built and how they change during chemical reactions. He looks at both organic (carbon-based) and inorganic molecules, as well as special molecules that contain metals.
Understanding Chemical Reactions
Hoffmann is famous for developing special tools and methods to study molecules using computers. One of these is the extended Hückel method, which he created in 1963. This method helps scientists understand how electrons move within molecules.
He also worked with Robert Burns Woodward to create the Woodward–Hoffmann rules. These rules are like a roadmap for chemical reactions. They help scientists predict how molecules will change when they react, especially how their shapes will be affected. The rules show that even small differences in the electron patterns of molecules can lead to very different results. For example, they can predict if a reaction will turn out differently if it's heated versus if it's exposed to light.
For this groundbreaking work, Roald Hoffmann received the 1981 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He shared the prize with Japanese chemist Kenichi Fukui, who had also worked on similar ideas. (Robert Burns Woodward could not receive the prize because it is only given to living people, but he had won a Nobel Prize for other work in 1965). In his Nobel speech, Hoffmann also introduced the isolobal principle, another important idea that helps predict how certain metal-containing molecules will bond.
More recently, Hoffmann has been studying how molecules behave under extreme pressure, like the pressure found deep inside the Earth. He finds it exciting to see how physical and chemical explanations come together to understand these conditions.
Beyond Science: Artistic Interests
Roald Hoffmann is not just a brilliant scientist; he also has a passion for the arts.
The World Of Chemistry
In 1988, Hoffmann became the host of a 26-episode TV show called The World of Chemistry. This educational series, shown on PBS, helped students and viewers learn about chemistry concepts through explanations and demonstrations.
Entertaining Science
Since 2001, Hoffmann has hosted a monthly event called Entertaining Science in New York City. This series explores how art and science connect and influence each other.
Books and Poetry
He has written books that explore the links between art and science, such as Roald Hoffmann on the Philosophy, Art, and Science of Chemistry. He is also a poet, with collections like The Metamict State and Gaps and Verges.
Plays
Hoffmann has also written plays. He co-wrote Oxygen, a play about the discovery of oxygen and what it's like to be a scientist. He also wrote "Should've," a play about ethics in science and art, and "Something That Belongs to You," which is based on his own experiences during the Holocaust.
Awards and Honors
Nobel Prize in Chemistry
In 1981, Roald Hoffmann received the highest honor in chemistry, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He shared it with Kenichi Fukui for their independent theories that explained how chemical reactions happen.
Other Recognitions
Hoffmann has received many other awards and more than 25 honorary degrees from universities around the world. Some of his notable awards include:
- ACS Award in Pure Chemistry, 1969
- Arthur C. Cope Award in Organic Chemistry, 1973 (with Robert Burns Woodward)
- National Medal of Science, 1983
- Elected a Foreign Member of the Royal Society in 1984
- Priestley Medal, 1990
- American Institute of Chemists Gold Medal, 2006
- Lomonosov Gold Medal, 2011
- Marie Curie Medal of the Polish Chemical Society, 2019
He is also a member of important scientific groups like the International Academy of Quantum Molecular Science. In 2018, the Hoffmann Institute of Advanced Materials in Shenzhen, China, was named in his honor. In 2023, he was recognized with the Great Immigrants Awards by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.
See also
In Spanish: Roald Hoffmann para niños
- List of Jewish Nobel laureates
