Noyes, Arthur A. (Arthur Amos), 1866-1936

Dates

• Existence: 1866 September 13 - 1936 June 3

Biography

Arthur Amos Noyes, 1866-1936, was an American chemist, inventor, and acting president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 1907 to 1909 [1]. BS, Chemistry, MIT, 1886; MS, Chemistry, MIT, 1887; PhD, University of Leipzig, 1890

Noyes started his professorship of chemistry at MIT in 1887, immediately following the completion of his thesis on organic chemistry. In 1888, after a year of teaching, he relocated to Leipzig to study under Wilhelm Ostwald in the new field of physical chemistry [2]. In 1890, Noyes earned his doctorate of chemistry working in Ostwald's laboratory, and would soon return to the United States, resuming his teaching career at MIT. He would hold his position as professor of chemistry for the next 30 years, until 1920. During this time he'd publish several works discussing analytical, organic, and physical chemistry: Qualitative Analysis of Inorganic Substances (1895); Laboratory Experiments on the Class Reactions and Identification of Organic Substances (with S. P. Mulliken, 1899); and The General Principles of Physical Science (1902) [2].

Noyes founded the Research Laboratory of Physical Chemistry at MIT in 1903, later becoming the chairman of the MIT faculty in 1906. In 1907, after publishing an article opposing the MIT / Harvard merger, he would become acting President of the Institute until 1909. As President, Noyes was devoted to the idea that students should learn the principles of science by solving problems. His research interests focused on the nature of the solutions of electrolytes [1].

Noyes would direct his laboratory for 17 years until his departure in 1920, officially leaving MIT to direct the Gates Chemical Laboratory at the California Institute of Technology.

In 1904, Noyes also became the youngest president of the American Chemical Society. Then, during the first World War, he served as chairman of the National Research Council in Washington, assisting the government across all scientific inquiry [2]. He later became president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1927 [3].

Arthur Amos Noyes died on June 3rd, 1936. His estate was left to the California Institute of Technology for the support of research in chemistry [3].

1. "ARTHUR AMOS NOYES, 1866-1936" MIT LIbraries (October 2004) 2. Miles S. Sherrill, "Arthur Amos Noyes (1866-1936)" American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Vol. 74, No. 6 (November 1940) 3. Linus Pauling, "Arthur Amos Noyes 1866-1936" National Academy of Sciences (1958)

Occupations

• University and college administrators
• Chemists

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