Peng Jiamu (, born 19 May 1925, disappeared 17 June 1980) was a Chinese biochemist and explorer.
Biography
Peng was born in
Guangzhou
Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
,
Guangdong
) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...
province, in 1935.
He received a biology degree from Central University of China (now
Nanjing University
Nanjing University (NJU) is a public university in Nanjing, Jiangsu, China. It is affiliated and sponsored by the Ministry of Education. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. The univers ...
), graduating in 1947 and subsequently joined the
Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry The Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences were research institutes of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous u ...
, where he studied and worked under
Cao Tianqin
Cao Tianqin (; 5 December 1920 – 8 January 1995), also known as Tien-chin Tsao, was a Chinese biochemist and a professor at the Shanghai Institute of Biochemistry. With a research focus on muscle protein, he discovered the myosin light chain ...
. He joined several scientific expeditions to
Xinjiang
Xinjiang,; , SASM/GNC romanization, SASM/GNC: Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Sinkiang, officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an Autonomous regions of China, autonomous region of the China, People' ...
organized by the
Chinese Academy of Sciences
The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS; ) is the national academy for natural sciences and the highest consultancy for science and technology of the People's Republic of China. It is the world's largest research organization, with 106 research i ...
(CAS), starting in 1956. On the expeditions, he catalogued species of flora and fauna and measured potassium accumulation in the
Lop Nor desert.
In 1979, a year before he disappeared in the Lop Desert, he was promoted to the Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. “Science,” he said, “is to walk a road not travelled by other people.”
Disappearance
Peng led a 1980 expedition to the Lop Nur desert, where he disappeared on 17 June, leaving a note saying he had gone out to find water.
A large-scale hunt for him was unsuccessful and widely covered by Chinese media. A TV documentary series named ''Searching for Peng Jiamu'' covered the events up to and after his disappearance.
On six occasions between 2005 and 2007, human remains were discovered that could have been his, but could not be proven as such.
See also
*
List of people who disappeared
References
1925 births
1980 deaths
1980s missing person cases
Biologists from Guangdong
Chemists from Guangdong
Chinese biochemists
Chinese explorers
20th-century explorers
Missing Chinese people
Missing person cases in China
Nanjing University alumni
People from Panyu District
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