Nobel Prize for Chemistry 2010

A few nights ago, I heard in the news that the The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has released to press their Nobel Prize awardees for Chemistry this year. I was not that excited about the story at first since chemistry is not really one of my interests.

However, my interest has been aroused when I’ve learned that one of the recipients, Dr. Richard F. Heck has been married to a Filipina and is residing now in the Philippines.

I believe he is worthy of mention not just because of his great achievement in the field of Chemistry, but also because of the fact that he is staying here in the Philippines.

I visited the official website of Nobel and there I learned:

Dr. Richard F. Heck

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry for 2010 went to Richard F. Heck, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA; Ei-ichi Negishi, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA and Akira Suzuki Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan "for palladium-catalyzed cross couplings in organic synthesis"

Organic chemistry has developed into an art form where scientists produce marvelous chemical creations in their test tubes. Mankind benefits from this in the form of medicines, ever-more precise electronics and advanced technological materials. The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2010 awards one of the most sophisticated tools available to chemists today.

Dr Richard F. Heck, is an American, born in 1931 at Springfield, Maryland, USA. He has earned his Ph.D. in 1954 from the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), CA, USA.

Information and photo courtesy of: "The Nobel Prize in
Chemistry 2010 - Press Release". Nobelprize.org. 06 Oct 2010

http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/chemistry/laureates/2010/press.html