Theme: Chemistry
An Oral History of the Francois Gilfillan family
An interview with Nan Jensen and Ellen Johnson conducted by Anne Bahde and Trevor
Sandgathe.
November 1, 2013
An iconic figure in the history of Oregon State University, Francois Gilfillan (1893-1983)
was a Pharmacy alum of Oregon Agricultural College, graduating in the class of 1918.
After a period of time spent on the East Coast, Gilfillan returned to his alma mater
serving as its Dean of Science and, from 1941-1942, Acting President. A professionally
trained chemist, Gilfillan was instrumental in furthering science education both regionally
and nationally. Gilfillan was also a true Renaissance man who spoke or read at least
nine languages, including Chinook, collected rare books and antique silver, and cultivated
an authentic Japanese garden. With his wife Violette, Gilfillan raised four children
including Elizabeth (Ellen) and Nansie, who share their recollections of Gilfillan
family life in this interview.
Ken Hedberg Oral History Interviews
Four life history interviews conducted by Chris Petersen.
September - October 2011
Ken Hedberg (b. 1920) has a personal connection to OSU that spans parts of nine decades.
Born in Portland and raised primarily in southern Oregon, Hedberg attended Oregon
State College from 1939-1942, graduating with a degree in Chemistry. Following a
stint working for Shell Development Company during World War II, Hedberg continued
his education at the California Institute of Technology, completing his Ph.D. in 1948
and developing a friendship with Linus Pauling that would last until Pauling's death
in 1994. Hedberg returned to his alma mater in 1956, accepting a position in the OSC
Chemistry department and remaining on faculty until retiring in 1987. Recognized
internationally as an expert on the determination of molecular structures through
the use of electron diffraction, Hedberg has continued to work and publish in the
years since his formal retirement, solving the structures of numerous compounds using
an apparatus that he designed and built in the mid-1950s. Over four interviews Hedberg
shares his memories of campus life in the years prior to World War II; discusses the
environment at Caltech during its "golden age"; provides insight into the life, work
and personality of Linus Pauling; and reflects on more than half a century of Chemistry
at OSU.
An Oral History of the Linus Pauling Institute
Six interviews with Steve Lawson, conducted by Chris Petersen.
August - December 2011
The Linus Pauling Institute was founded in 1973 by Linus Pauling and two colleagues,
and was originally located near the campus of Stanford University. Primarily devoted
to exploring Pauling's controversial ideas on the health benefits of large doses of
vitamin C, the Institute gradually developed a broad and eclectic research agenda
that included work on superconductivity, molecular evolution, and metabolic profiling.
Consistently hamstrung by financial woes and further embattled by personnel disputes
that resulted in legal actions, the Institute was on the brink of closure by the time
of Pauling's death in 1994. Buoyed by a handful of timely donations and the administrative
acumen of Pauling's eldest son, Linus Pauling Jr., the Institute managed to stay afloat
and, in 1996, relocated to Oregon State University. Today the Linus Pauling Institute
is a thriving research enterprise that makes regular contributions to the fights against
cancer and cardiovascular disease, and to the promotion of healthy aging. Over the
course of six interviews, Steve Lawson, an Administrative Officer at LPI who has worked
for the Institute since 1977, relays his memories of the Institute's colorful history
and shares his impressions of Linus Pauling, whom Lawson knew as a colleague and as
a friend for nearly two decades.
Walter Loveland Oral History Interview
Life history interview conducted by Chris Petersen and Linda Richards.
July 22, 2015
Walter Loveland (b. 1939) is a nuclear chemist who has been a member of the OSU faculty
since 1968. A decorated scholar who has made important contributions to the study
of super-heavy elements, Loveland enjoyed a twenty-three year collaboration with Glenn
Seaborg (1912-1999), a Nobel laureate and fellow nuclear chemist who was based at
the University of California, Berkeley. The organizer of a 2012 symposium to celebrate
the centenary of Seaborg's birth, Loveland was honored by the American Chemical Society
with the 2014 Glenn T. Seaborg Award for Nuclear Chemistry, an acknowledgement of
his key contributions to the understanding of super-heavy elements and heavy-element
synthesis. In a wide-ranging interview, Loveland shares his institutional memories
of nuclear chemistry and radiation science at OSU; recalls his work and friendship
with Glenn Seaborg; and provides his perspective on cultural and academic change at
Oregon State.
Hossein Rojhantalab Oral History Interview
Life history interview conducted by Janice Dilg.
June 2, 2014
Hossein Rojhantalab (b. 1944), a native of Iran, conducted doctoral studies at OSU
in Physical Chemistry, completing his Ph.D in 1976. Rojhantalab then returned to Iran,
working as a university professor and textbook publisher. In 1985, alarmed by the
turmoil that had arisen in the wake of the Iranian Islamic Revolution, Rojhantalab
came back to the United States, ultimately settling into a successful career at Intel,
Inc. His interview discusses his background, the time that he spent in Corvallis,
the circumstances that led to his final departure from Iran, and his life at Intel.
Mas Subramanian Oral History Interview
Life history interview conducted by Chris Petersen.
September 30, 2015
Mas Subramanian (b. 1953) joined the OSU Chemistry faculty in 2006, following a prolific
twenty-two year research career at DuPont, a time period during which he published
more than 200 papers and secured some 50 patents. A leader in the field of solid state
chemistry, and a heavily cited expert on a class of minerals called pyrochlores, Subramanian
is perhaps best known for his laboratory's discovery of a new form of blue pigment.
First synthesized accidentally in 2009, this new type of colorant possesses highly
advantageous environmental properties and can also be structurally manipulated to
create nearly every color in the spectrum. Subramanian's interview traces his upbringing
and education in India; his work habits and hugely productive tenure at DuPont; his
institutional memories of Chemistry at OSU; the import of his serendipitous pigment
discovery and his thoughts on the role that chance has often played in the history
of scientific advancement.