Zhuang changgong
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Zhuang Changgong was born in Quanzhou, Fujian. Organic chemist and educator, pioneer of steroid chemistry in China, founder of organic microanalysis. 192 1 graduated from the university of Chicago, USA, and 1924 received his doctorate. 1948 was elected as an academician of academia sinica. 1955 was elected as an academician of China Academy of Sciences. 1962 died in February 15.
He has made outstanding contributions to organic synthesis, especially the synthesis of steroid compounds and the structural study of natural organic compounds. The structure of ergostane was confirmed, the structure of ergosterol was deduced, and a synthetic method of diketone A containing keratin was designed, which was called "Johnson method". The oxidative cleavage of steroid side chains was studied. He was one of the few well-known chemists engaged in steroid synthesis at that time, and his work was introduced into textbooks. Tetrandrine and tetrandrine were separated from tetrandrine and their structures were clarified. He attached importance to and participated in the formulation of Chinese nomenclature in organic chemistry. At present, he initiated the naming of heterocyclic compounds such as indole and pyrrole.
In his research work, he emphasized the spirit of innovation and advocated the idea of "doing something before doing something". He promoted the establishment of Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry and Beijing Institute of Chemistry of Chinese Academy of Sciences. 1956 served as a member of the the State Council science planning commission, and participated in the formulation of 1956- 1967 science and technology development plan and other documents. He used to be director of the Department of Chemistry of Northeastern University, dean of the School of Science of National Central University, director of the Institute of Chemistry of Academia Sinica, president of Taiwan Province Provincial University and director of the Institute of Organic Chemistry of China Academy of Sciences.
Speaking of Zhuang Changgong, one thing was once told as a much-told story in Northeastern University. That was when I was working at Northeastern University. One Sunday, he took a worker to the laboratory to do experiments. When he was absorbed in the experiment, he handed a glass bottle to the person standing behind him and said, "Please clean it." The man replied, "Yes, Professor Zhuang!" Then I laughed. He looked back and found the headmaster, Zhang Xueliang, behind him. Zhang Xueliang gave a thumbs-up and said, "You are really a scientist!"
This shows that Zhuang Changgong is serious about his research work. Innovation, persistence, integrity and diligence are the impressions of students and colleagues. Today, compared with 70 years ago, scientific research in China has taken on a new look. However, many interviewees told the China Science Journal that the qualities of the older generation of scientists, such as Zhuang Changgong, are still shining, which is worth learning from today's researchers.
As a pioneer of organic chemistry in China, Zhuang Changgong devoted his life to scientific research and higher education. His research on the synthesis of steroid compounds enjoys a high reputation in the field of international organic chemistry. Established the first organic microanalysis laboratory in China, and trained a number of academic leaders such as Gao Yisheng and Huang Yaoceng. The organic chemistry terms he advocated, such as indole and pyrrole, are still in use today. Guo Moruo, then president of Chinese Academy of Sciences, called him "a banner of China chemistry".
Chemistry in troubled times
Zhuang Changgong 1894 12.25 was born in Quanzhou, Fujian, a declining scholar. With the support of Liao Wang, an overseas Chinese village in the Philippines, he went to the University of Chicago for further study at the age of 25. Seeing the economic depression in southern Fujian at that time, he originally planned to study agricultural chemistry to make sugar from sugarcane and take the road of saving the country through industry. Persuaded by Julius Stieglitz, a doctoral supervisor, he learned that engaging in basic research can also serve the motherland.
1924, Zhuang Changgong returned to China. He first stayed in Wuhan University for a short time, and then served as a professor and head of the Department of Chemistry at Northeastern University. He not only teaches chemistry courses, but also carries out basic research, leading students to publish research articles on chemical constituents of Chinese herbal medicines such as Scrophularia, Stellera chamaejasme and Alisma orientalis. 193 1 year, after the September 18th incident, the northeast fell. He left the northeast of China without giving in to the enemy.
Subsequently, Zhuang Changgong visited Germany. During his laboratory in A. Windaus, a Nobel Prize winner and professor at the University of G? ttingen, he solved the unsolved problem of ergosterol structure with careful planning and exquisite experimental skills, and speculated the structure of ergosterol. Because ergosterol is related to the structure of vitamin D, the related results quickly attracted attention after the publication of the Justus von Liebig Chemical Annual Report. The oxidation method he initially used later became the method used in the industrial production of steroid hormones.
The Nobel Prize winner P. Karrer included this paper in the textbook of organic chemistry. "This is an international organic chemistry textbook in the 1940s. In the version published by 1942, * * listed 166 documents, among which only Zhuang Changgong's article on ergosterol was written by China people. " Dai Lixin, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, introduced. Since then, two other American monographs have also mentioned this work.
This strengthened Zhuang Changgong's confidence in winning glory for his country in the field of basic research, and he decided to bring the international frontier topic of steroid chemical synthesis back to China for research. Steroids have complex structures and many asymmetric carbon atoms. At that time, only a few people in the world dared to manage. Zhuang Changgong worked hard with graduates from several national central universities and northeastern universities. From 1935 to 194 1, they published 14 papers in the most famous German chemical journal at that time.
But when Zhuang Changgong can produce the most results, it happens that our country is in dire straits. The full-scale invasion of the Japanese invaders forced him to "jump ship" frequently. During this period, I worked in the Department of Chemistry of National Central University, the Institute of Chemistry of Academia Sinica, the Institute of Pharmacy of Beijing Research Institute, and moved to Nanjing, Shanghai, Kunming and other places, and even stopped working for a time. Therefore, his research on sex hormone estrone lost the opportunity in the competition with European and American teams. Nevertheless, its achievements still attract international attention.
"Mr. Zhuang's work in the artificial synthesis of steroid compounds was very advanced and unprecedented in the world at that time. Judging from the magazines in which he published articles, his work has been internationally recognized. " Dai Lixin said. In this regard, in the fifth issue of Science Monthly (1992), Liu Guangding, honorary professor of the Department of Chemistry of Taiwan Province Provincial University, also wrote: "His success can make China people have confidence."
In addition, Zhuang Changgong established the discipline of organic microanalysis for the first time in China. At that time, all kinds of spectral instruments had not come out, and organic microanalysis was the most important means to determine the structure, but because of the small amount, it needed hard study to master it. While studying in Germany, he went to F. Pregl laboratory of Graz University, Austria, a Nobel Prize winner, to study organic microanalysis technology and ordered related instruments. Today, people can also see the microbalance he brought back from Austria when they visit the museum of organic history.
Everyone has the responsibility to succeed in this field.
A flower is not spring, only hard work to serve the country. Zhuang Changgong has never forgotten this original intention.
As early as 1923, Zhuang Changgong and Li Baoqing, a chemist studying in the United States, organized the chinese chemical society in the United States, and planned to publish the Journal of chinese chemical society to publish research topics. Unfortunately, it was not published. 1932 after the establishment of chinese chemical society, he took an active part.
Zhuang Changgong has long recognized that the important factor to improve the international academic status is quality, not quantity. During his tenure as the director of the Institute of Chemistry of Academia Sinica, he changed the way of writing research reports and editing and publishing, and asked his colleagues to submit their research results to first-class journals at home and abroad, and then edit them after they were officially published. "In recent years, the research results of this institute have made great progress," Liu Guangding wrote. Unfortunately, successive wars have deprived China's scientific community of the opportunity to learn and popularize this method.
1948, Zhuang Changgong returned from a visit to the United States and became the president of Taiwan Province Provincial University. However, it is difficult to dismiss some related old faculty members, and it is impossible to carry out school affairs because Kuomintang spies broke into the school to catch students. After returning to Shanghai, he lived at home by reviewing manuscripts.
1949 After the founding of New China, Zhuang Changgong was quickly hired as the preparatory committee member of China Academy of Sciences. 1950 was appointed as the first director of the Institute of Organic Chemistry of China Academy of Sciences. In the early days of its establishment, he recruited talents extensively and adjusted his research direction, thus creating conditions for the development of organic chemistry in New China. "Many of his ideas are very new, and some ideas and opinions played an important role at that time." For example, Dai Lixin said that the establishment of an organic institute in two disciplines is one of them.
Zhuang Changgong always keeps up with the pace of new technology. "At that time, as a director, he kept learning and mastering the latest scientific knowledge in two new fields of polymers and antibiotics developed by organic enterprises." Dai Lixin, 1953, entered the Institute to help Zhuang Changgong collect polymer research documents, and was deeply impressed by the latter's research and pragmatic spirit.
Since then, the Polymer Group of the Institute of Organic Sciences has moved to Beijing, becoming a main force of the Institute of Chemistry of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Zhuang Changgong was appointed as the chairman of the preparatory committee of the institute.
In addition, Zhuang Changgong also served as the editorial board of Journal of chinese chemical society and Journal of Chemistry for a long time. He attached great importance to China's terminology of organic chemistry, and often said that it was a prerequisite for the growth of chemistry in China. Now some commonly used organic chemistry terms, such as indole, pyrrole and other heterocyclic terms, are his ideas.
Good at diligence and successful thinking.
Zhuang Changgong is not only a scientist, but also an educator. His students and colleagues, such as Xing, Gao Yisheng, Huang Yaoceng and Zhu, later became leaders of teaching units or research units.
According to Tian Yulin and others, Zhuang Changgong was very careful in preparing lessons and was always wondering how to make students easy to understand. Therefore, when he lectures, he can often make students "fascinated and listen with relish", and when discussing problems with him, he can make people "really feel the spring breeze".
Zhuang Changgong's love for science exerts a subtle influence on students. Tian Yulin and others wrote in the article recalling the tutor that he had a month's holiday in summer, and once, less than a week later, he came back to participate in the experiment. When he designs the research route, he often consults a lot of documents and even stays up all night.
Zhuang Changgong emphasized that scientific research should have a rigorous attitude. When his work on the structure of ergosterol was published, a colleague in Windaus's laboratory thought that his success was due to luck. Zhuang Changgong replied: "Scientific research does not depend on luck. You must have strong perseverance, rigorous attitude and keen observation to succeed. " He often uses it to educate his students.
Zhuang Changgong also attaches great importance to family education. Influenced by his father, two of Zhuang Yahui's three brothers chose chemistry as their major. In Zhuang Yahui's impression, what his father said most was "If you don't do one thing, start doing one thing", "If you take the method, you will get the right method" and "If you stop at the last stop, you will die".
"My father asked me to choose an innovative and meaningful direction for scientific research, to sit on the bench, to put myself in a situation where there is no retreat, and to overcome difficulties wholeheartedly." Father's words, from taking up scientific research posts to later serving as the director of the ecological environment research center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, have been engraved in Zhuang Yahui's heart.
During a trip to Northeast China, Zhuang Changgong unfortunately fell ill and his health went from bad to worse. 1Feb. 96215th, he died in Shanghai.
In order to commemorate Zhuang Changgong's contribution to basic chemical research, Shanghai Chemical and Chemical Society has established the 1993 Zhuang Changgong Scientific and Technological Progress Award to encourage young and middle-aged researchers who have made outstanding contributions to basic research. 20 17 Shanghai Institute of Organic Sciences and East China Normal University jointly established Zhuang Changgong Institute. "Named after Teacher Zhuang, I want to give the institute a distinctive personality and first-class genes." He Mingyuan, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said.
Diligence is good for thrift, play is wasted, and thinking is ruined. Zhuang Changgong once passed this sentence from Han Yu to Huang Yaoceng, and Huang Yaoceng passed it on to Dai Lixin. In this regard, Dai Lixin said: "It is one thing to have a genius. Young people need diligence and innovation if they want to do well in a certain field. "
Zhuang Changgong's pen and seal.
Zhuangchanggong writing brush calligraphy
1952, Zhuang Changgong attended the staff meeting of Institute of Organic Chemistry, China Academy of Sciences.
Reporter's notes
Do scientific research, can't fool at all.
In the process of writing the article Zhuang Changgong, the founder of science, I have an image in my mind: before the background of war and people's displacement, there was always a person doing research on the experimental platform.
He not only actively engaged in research, but also aimed at the synthesis of sterols, the most difficult direction of organic chemistry in the 1930s. He didn't flinch because of the backward environment and equipment of chemical research in China, and he was determined to compete with European and American teams for the foundation of China research.
Zhuang Changgong published more than ten papers in his life, a small number, but all of them have high academic value. In China, where people were worried at that time, he chose to engage in pioneering work and achieved a series of internationally recognized achievements, which reflected his extraordinary vision, extraordinary courage and firm perseverance.
What impressed me deeply was his strategic thinking on scientific development: quality is important, not weight. He has a long-term global thinking and believes that first-class research results should be in line with international standards. And through yourself and others, put this concept into practice in work. This is especially useful for current scientific research.
Today, judging from the state's emphasis on scientific research and financial support, we can proudly say that we are doing science at the best time and place. At present, the number of papers published in China ranks first in the world, but we need to be vigilant at all times. Don't be fooled when doing scientific research. Doing scientific research is not for pursuing papers. China needs more truly valuable achievements to lay a solid foundation for scientific research.
Compared with some familiar scientists, there is less information about Zhuang Changgong. In this interview, apart from a few articles, the author was lucky enough to get in touch with Academician Dai Lixin and his eldest son, Zhuang Yahui, former director of the Center for Ecological Environment Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and get a glimpse of the life of this pioneer of organic chemistry in China.
Recalling his father, Zhuang Yahui still remembers something 70 years ago. After a middle school exam, he found that the teacher gave him a hundred points less when calculating the total score. The teenager who was still worried after returning home cried. His father asked the reason and said to him, "Doesn't this affect your grades? Learning depends on scores and can't explain anything. " This taught him not to pursue superficial things.
Zhuang Changgong dedicated his passion to chemistry, but he was indifferent to money and fame. Zhuang Yahui's grandfather is a national capitalist, and most of his relatives and friends on his mother's side are rich. They secretly called Zhuang Changgong a "strange son-in-law". They didn't like dealing with people and didn't know how to make money, but Zhuang Changgong didn't care when he knew about it.
From some small things, we can feel the temperature of the scientist's life and work. When Zhuang Changgong worked in the Institute of Chemistry of Academia Sinica, his salary was relatively high, and he gave financial aid to some poor students of Zhuang Yahui's brothers. He thinks that he can go to the United States to study, but also depends on other people's funding.
What he did also reflected his love for this country. After the victory of World War II, American Lily Pharmaceutical Company hired him with an annual salary of tens of thousands of dollars, and he was not interested. Bayer Pharmaceuticals of Germany wanted to buy his patent, and he replied that the result was not private. In the early days of the founding of New China, China was short of foreign exchange, so he took the foreign exchange saved during his last visit to the United States to the bank for exchange. After being converted into RMB, all of them will be donated to the state to support the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea.
Today's world is changing so fast that sometimes we have to be carried away by time, and we have no time to think about what we really need or review what we lack. Perhaps, we need to stop in a hurry and talk to those thoughtful and warm souls in the history of science in order to advance on the road of scientific research better.
The life of the character
●1894 65438+February 25th, born in Quanzhou, Fujian.
●1916-1919, studying at Beiping National Agricultural College. 19 19 got Tsinghua University's allowance to study in the United States, but because of overseas Chinese funding, he went directly to study in the United States.
●1922 ——1924, studied in the Department of Chemistry, University of Chicago, USA, and obtained a doctorate in philosophy.
● 1924, short-term teaching in Wuchang University, Hubei Province.
●1925 ——1931year, served as professor and head of the Department of Chemistry of Northeastern University in Fengtian. During the period of1926-1933, he gave a research lecture for the Council of China Education and Culture Fund.
●1931-1933, as the research chair of the board of directors of the University of G? ttingen, the University of Munich and the China Education and Culture Fund.
●1933 ——1930, Professor of Chemistry Department of Nanjing National Central University, Dean of Science College.
●1934 ——1938, Director, Institute of Chemistry, National Academy of Sciences, Shanghai/Kunming. 1934- 1945, Professor of Research, China Education and Culture Fund. 1935, served as the first reviewer of academia sinica.
●1939 ——1942, researcher, Institute of Pharmacology, Shanghai National Peking Research Institute. 1940 was elected as a member of the second Council of Academia Sinica.
●1942 ——1945, researcher and acting director, Institute of Pharmacology, Kunming National Peking Research Institute.
1946 ——1947, went to the United States to study organic chemistry and medicinal chemistry.
● 1948 was elected as an academician of academia sinica.
● 65438+June 0948-65438+February 0948, Taiwan Province Regional Leaders University.
●1950 ——1954, researcher and director, Institute of Organic Chemistry, China Academy of Sciences. 1955 was elected as an academician of China Academy of Sciences and concurrently served as the deputy director of the Department of Mathematics and Physics.
●1February 1962 15, died in Shanghai.
China journal of science
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