Wallace Reed Brode (12 June 1900 – August 1974) was an American

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe th ...

. He was president of the

American Chemical Society The American Chemical Society (ACS) is a scientific society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of chemistry. Founded in 1876 at New York University, the ACS currently has more than 155,000 members at all ...

in 1969 and of the

Optical Society of America Optica (formerly known as The Optical Society (OSA) and before that as the Optical Society of America) is a professional society of individuals and companies with an interest in optics and photonics. It publishes journals and organizes conference ...

in 1961.Past Presidents of the Optical Society of America http://www.osa.org/aboutosa/leadership/pastpresidents/default.aspx He received the

Priestley Medal The Priestley Medal is the highest honor conferred by the American Chemical Society (ACS) and is awarded for distinguished service in the field of chemistry. Established in 1922, the award is named after Joseph Priestley, the discoverer of oxygen ...

in 1960.

Biography

Brode was born in

Walla Walla, Washington Walla Walla is a city in Walla Walla County, Washington, where it is the largest city and county seat. It had a population of 34,060 at the 2020 census, estimated to have decreased to 33,927 as of 2021. The population of the city and its two su ...

, one of male triplets, the others being brothers Malcolm and

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

, each of whom became a distinguished scientist. He also had another older brother, Stanley. His father, Howard, was a biology professor at

Whitman College Whitman College is a private liberal arts college in Walla Walla, Washington. The school offers 53 majors and 33 minors in the liberal arts and sciences, and it has a student-to-faculty ratio of 9:1. Whitman was the first college in the Pacific ...

, where Brode would earn his D.Sc in 1921. While studying for his Ph.D at

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Uni ...

under Roger Adams, he developed a lifelong interest in dyes and

spectroscopy Spectroscopy is the field of study that measures and interprets the electromagnetic spectra that result from the interaction between electromagnetic radiation and matter as a function of the wavelength or frequency of the radiation. Matter ...

. He was on the faculty of

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best pub ...

(1928–48, professor 1939–48); head of the science department at US

Naval Ordnance Test Station Naval Air Weapons Station (NAWS) China Lake is a large military installation in California that supports the research, testing and evaluation programs of the United States Navy. It is part of Navy Region Southwest under Commander, Navy Installat ...

1945–47; Science Adviser to the US Secretary of State 1958–60 and director of Barnes Engineering Co. in Washington from 1960 onwards. He also served on the board of trustees for Science Service, now known as

Society for Science & the Public Society for Science, formerly known as Science Service and later Society for Science and the Public, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of science, through its science education programs and publications, including ...

, from 1957-1972. During his career he developed molecular model sets, using wooden rods and balls to create three-dimensional representations of molecular bonds in chemical compounds.

Publications

*''Chemical Spectroscopy'' 1939 *(with others) ''Laboratory Outlines of Organic Chemistry'' 1940 *(with others) ''The Roger Adams Symposium'' 1955

References

External links

* http://newton.nap.edu/html/biomems/wbrode.html
National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoir

Biography

Publications

References

External links

See also