Benjamin Widom (October 13, 1927 – January 23, 2025) was an American physical chemist. He was the Goldwin Smith Professor of Chemistry at

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

. His research interests included

physical chemistry Physical chemistry is the study of macroscopic and microscopic phenomena in chemical systems in terms of the principles, practices, and concepts of physics such as motion, energy, force, time, thermodynamics, quantum chemistry, statistical mech ...

and

statistical mechanics In physics, statistical mechanics is a mathematical framework that applies statistical methods and probability theory to large assemblies of microscopic entities. Sometimes called statistical physics or statistical thermodynamics, its applicati ...

. In 1998, Widom was awarded the Boltzmann Medal "for his illuminating studies of the statistical mechanics of fluids and fluid mixtures and their interfacial properties, especially his clear and general formulation of scaling hypotheses for the equation of state and

surface tension Surface tension is the tendency of liquid surfaces at rest to shrink into the minimum surface area possible. Surface tension (physics), tension is what allows objects with a higher density than water such as razor blades and insects (e.g. Ge ...

s of fluids near critical points." Widom's professional papers are archived at Cornell University.

Academic background

Widom was born in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

. His younger brother was

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, mathematical structure, structure, space, Mathematica ...

Harold Widom. He graduated from

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Stuyvesant High School Stuyvesant High School ( ) is a co-ed, State school, public, college-preparatory, Specialized high schools in New York City, specialized high school in Manhattan, New York City. The school, commonly called "Stuy" ( ) by its students, faculty, a ...

in 1945, and received his BA from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in 1949, followed by his PhD from Cornell in 1953. He became an instructor of chemistry at Cornell in 1954, was appointed assistant professor in 1955 and a full professor in 1963. He was chair of the chemistry department between 1978 and 1981. He was elected a member of the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, NGO, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the ...

in 1974 and a fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (The Academy) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and other ...

in 1979.

Personal life

Widom was father to Michael Widom, a professor of physics at Carnegie Mellon University, Elizabeth Widom, a professor of geology at Miami University, and Jonathan Widom, a professor of biochemistry at Northwestern University. He was brother to Harold Widom, professor emeritus of mathematics at U. C. Santa Cruz. Widom's niece

Jennifer Widom Jennifer Widom (born ) is an American computer scientist known for her work in database systems and data management. She is notable for foundational contributions to semi-structured data management and data stream management systems. Since 2017 ...

is the Frederick Emmons Terman Dean of the Stanford School of Engineering and the Fletcher Jones Professor of Computer Science.

Death

Widom died in

Ithaca, New York Ithaca () is a city in and the county seat of Tompkins County, New York, United States. Situated on the southern shore of Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes region of New York (state), New York, Ithaca is the largest community in the Ithaca metrop ...

, on January 23, 2025. He was 97.Benjamin Widom, influential physical chemist, dies at 97
news.cornell.edu, 31 January 2025. Retrieved 31 January 2025.

Publications

* ''Theoretical modeling: An introduction''. Ber. Bunsenges. Phys. Chem. 1996, 100, 242. * ''Theory of phase equilibrium''. J. Phys. Chem. 1996, 100, 13190. * Lekkerkerker, H.N.W.; Widom, B. ''An Exactly Solvable Model for Depletion Phenomena''. Physica A 2000, 285, 483-492. * Barkema, G.T.; Widom, B. ''Model of Hydrophobic Attraction in Two and Three Dimensions''. J. Chem Phys. 2000, 113, 2349-2353. * Weiss, V.C.; Widom, B. ''Contact Angles in Sequential Wetting: Pentane On Water''. Physica A 2001, 292, 137-145. * Widom, B. ''Surface Tension and Molecular Correlations near the Critical Point'', J. Chem. Phys. 1965, 43, 3892-3897. * Widom, B. ''Equation of State in the Neighborhood of the Critical Point'', J. Chem. Phys. 1965, 43, 3898-3905. * Widom, B.; Bhimalapuram, P; Koga, K. ''The Hydrophobic Effect''. Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys. (PCCP) 2003, 5, 3085-3093.

Awards

* New York Academy of Sciences Boris Pregel Award in Chemical Physics * ACS Langmuir Medal in Chemical Physics, 1982 * ACS Hildebrand Award in Theoretical and Experimental Chemistry of Liquids *

Carnegie-Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a Private university, private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The institution was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools. In 1912, it became t ...

Dickson Prize for Science, 1987 *

University of Wisconsin–Madison The University of Wisconsin–Madison (University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin, UW, UW–Madison, or simply Madison) is a public land-grant research university in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. It was founded in 1848 when Wisconsin achieved st ...

Hirschfelder Prize *

Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (, KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed in the Trippenhuis in Amsterdam. In addition to various advisory a ...

, Bakhuys Roozeboom Medal * Onsager Lectureship, 1994 * Boltzmann Medal, 1998 * IUPAP Commission on Statistical Physics, 1998 * ACS Award in Theoretical Chemistry, 1999 *

American Philosophical Society The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...

* American Academy of Arts and Sciences Fellow * New York Academy of Sciences Fellow

References

Benjamin Widom
at Cornell University's Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology

{{DEFAULTSORT:Widom, Benjamin 1927 births 2025 deaths Scientists from Newark, New Jersey Stuyvesant High School alumni Columbia College (New York) alumni Cornell University alumni American theoretical chemists American physical chemists Cornell University faculty Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences Scientists from New York (state) Fellows of the American Physical Society Recipients of the Boltzmann Medal Members of the American Philosophical Society