Malcolm Harold Chisholm (15 October 1945 – 20 November 2015) was a British

inorganic chemist An inorganic compound is typically a chemical compound that lacks carbon–hydrogen bonds⁠that is, a compound that is not an organic compound. The study of inorganic compounds is a subfield of chemistry known as ''inorganic chemistry''. Inorgan ...

who worked mainly in North America, a Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Distinguished University Professor of Mathematical and Physical Sciences at

Ohio State University The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one ...

who contributed to the synthesis and structural chemistry of

transition metal complex A coordination complex is a chemical compound consisting of a central atom or ion, which is usually metallic and is called the ''coordination centre'', and a surrounding array of bound molecules or ions, that are in turn known as ''ligands'' or ...

es.

Early life and education

Malcolm Harold Chisholm was born on 15 October 1945 in

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

, where his parents were based. Six months after his birth, Chisholm's family moved back to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

to the family's home in

Inverness Inverness (; ; from the , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness") is a city in the Scottish Highlands, having been granted city status in 2000. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highland ...

. At the age of 3, his family then moved to southern England where he obtained his early education. He later went to

Queen Mary College Queen Mary University of London (QMUL, or informally QM, and formerly Queen Mary and Westfield College) is a public research university in Mile End, East London, England. It is a member institution of the federal University of London. Today, ...

and received a BSc in 1966 and a PhD in Inorganic Chemistry in 1969 whilst working under the direction of Donald C. Bradley.

Career

After receiving his PhD, Chisholm went to the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO; branded as Western University) is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thame ...

to work as a

postdoctoral fellow A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). Postdocs most commonly, but not always, have a temporary academ ...

in the laboratory of Howard Charles Clark from 1969 to 1972. He held faculty positions at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a state university system, system of Public university, public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. The system has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration o ...

, and

. He achieved recognition for developing the chemistry of alkoxy- and amido-supported complexes of dimolybdenum and ditungsten, illustrated by Mo₂(NMe₂)₆.

Recognition

Chisholm received several awards and honors, among them: * Ludwig Mond Award of the

Royal Society of Chemistry The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society and professional association in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemistry, chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the ...

(2001) * American Chemical Society Award for Distinguished Service in the Advancement of Inorganic Chemistry (1999) *

Davy Medal The Davy Medal is awarded by the Royal Society of London "for an outstandingly important recent discovery in any branch of chemistry". Named after Humphry Davy, the medal is awarded with a monetary gift, initially of £1000 (currently £2000). Re ...

of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

(1999) *

Centenary Prize The Centenary Prize is an award granted annually by the United Kingdom-based Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) to up to three "outstanding chemists, who are also exceptional communicators, from overseas". The prize, established in 1947, and fir ...

from the

(1994) * American Chemical Society Award in Inorganic Chemistry (1989) He was elected as a

fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

in 1990, a

fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

in 2005, a member of the U.S.

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 2005 and a member of the Leopoldina in 2004.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chisholm, Malcolm Harold 1945 births 2015 deaths Scottish chemists 20th-century British chemists Indiana University faculty Members of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences Ohio State University faculty Princeton University faculty Fellows of the Royal Society Scientists from Mumbai