Herbert Charles Brown (May 22, 1912 – December 19, 2004) was a chemist and Nobel Prize in Chemistry laureate for his work with organoboranes.
Brown was born Herbert Brovarnik in London to Ukrainian Jewish immigrants. He moved to the United States in June 1914, at the age of two. In autumn 1935, he entered the University of Chicago, completed two years of studies in three quarters, and earned a B.S. in 1936. That same year, he became a naturalized...
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Herbert Charles Brown (May 22, 1912 – December 19, 2004) was a chemist and Nobel Prize in Chemistry laureate for his work with organoboranes.
Brown was born Herbert Brovarnik in London to Ukrainian Jewish immigrants. He moved to the United States in June 1914, at the age of two. In autumn 1935, he entered the University of Chicago, completed two years of studies in three quarters, and earned a B.S. in 1936. That same year, he became a naturalized United States citizen. On February 6, 1937, Brown married Sarah Baylen, the person he credits with making him interested in hydrides of boron, a topic related to the work in which he with Georg Wittig won the Nobel prize in Chemistry in 1979. Two years after starting graduate studies, he earned a Ph.D. in 1938, also from the University of Chicago. Unable to find a position in industry, he decided to accept an offer for a position as a post-doctorate. This became the beginning of his academic career. He became an Instructor at the University...
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