William Hobson Mills facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
William Hobson Mills
FRS
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Walter Hobson Mills in 1943
© National Portrait Gallery, London |
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| Born | 6 July 1873 |
| Died | 22 February 1959 (aged 85) |
| Resting place | Cambridge Crematorium |
| Nationality | British |
| Known for | Organic chemistry; stereochemistry |
| Spouse(s) | Mildred May Gostling |
| Awards | See list |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | |
William Hobson Mills (born July 6, 1873 – died February 22, 1959) was a British organic chemist. He was also a Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS), which is a very high honor for scientists in the United Kingdom. He is best known for his important work in organic chemistry, especially in an area called stereochemistry. This field looks at how atoms are arranged in 3D space within molecules.
Contents
Early Life and Education
William Hobson Mills was born in Hammersmith, England, on July 6, 1873. He was the oldest of five children. His father, William Henry Mills, was an architect. His mother was Emily Wiles Quincey. Soon after he was born, his family moved to Spalding, Lincolnshire, his mother's hometown.
William went to Spalding Grammar School and then to Uppingham School. In October 1892, he started studying natural sciences at Jesus College, Cambridge. He had an injury to his Achilles tendon from school, so he stayed home for a year. He returned to Cambridge in October 1894. He did very well in his science studies, getting top marks in chemistry in 1897.
After graduating, Mills began doing research at the Cambridge University Chemical Laboratory. He worked with a chemist named Thomas Easterfield.
Important Research and Teaching
In 1899, Mills traveled to Tübingen, Germany. He worked there for two years with Professor Hans von Pechmann. During this time, he became good friends with another chemist, Nevil Sidgwick.
In 1902, Mills became the Head of the Chemical Department at the Polytechnic Institute. He stayed there for ten years. While working there, he and his team helped prove a theory about how certain chemical compounds, called oximes, could exist in different forms. He also published a research paper with his wife, Mildred May Gostling.
In 1912, Mills returned to Cambridge University. He became a lecturer and a fellow at Jesus College.
Contributions During World War I
During World War I, William Hobson Mills led a special laboratory. Their mission was to figure out the structure of a chemical called pinacyanol. This chemical was invented by a German company. It was used to make photographic plates more sensitive to red light. This meant German planes could take clearer photos of battlefields, especially at dawn.
Mills and his team worked hard to find a way to make pinacyanol. His staff included a talented student named Frances Mary Hamer. Thanks to their efforts, British forces were able to produce their own pinacyanol. This greatly improved their aerial photographs and helped the war effort.
Later Career and Retirement
In 1919, Mills became a University Lecturer at Cambridge. In 1931, the university created a special position for him: a Readership in Stereochemistry. He held this position until he retired in 1938. During these years, he continued his research on oximes. He also studied other complex molecules and dyes.
Awards and Honors
William Hobson Mills received many important awards and held several leadership roles:
- He became a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1923.
- He received the Chemical Society's Longstaff Medal in 1930.
- He was awarded the Royal Society's Davy Medal in 1935.
- He served as Vice-Master of Jesus College, Cambridge, from 1940 to 1948.
- He was President of the Chemical Society for two terms, from 1942 to 1944.
Family Life
William Hobson Mills married Mildred May Gostling, who was also a chemist, in 1903. They had four children: three daughters named Marjorie, Sylvia Margaret, and Isabel, and one son named William George Quincy.
William Hobson Mills passed away at his home in Cambridge on February 22, 1959. He was 85 years old. His wife and children survived him. Mildred Mills died a few years later in 1962.
His daughter Sylvia Margaret married a zoologist named Richard Julius Pumphrey in 1933. They had three children. His son, William George Quincy, became a surgeon. He married Katharine N Hone in 1938 and they had three children.
Images for kids
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Walter Hobson Mills in 1943
