Letter from Linus Pauling to William C. Boyd March 29, 1939. Page 1  Larger Images / More Information. 2 pp.  View Transcript

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Activity Listings

• Letter from Henry Eyring, Princeton University to LP RE: A N. R. C. Committee on the Application of Quantum Mechanics to Chemistry meeting will be held to discuss a symposium (explained in enclosed communication between Eyring and Herbert R. Moody, N. R. C.). [LP's reply April 4, 1939] [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #110, Folder #110.7]
• Letter from LP to C. K. Ingold, University College, London RE: LP is sure Chia-Si Lu will be admitted to CIT for an adv. degree with Ingold's recommendation. LP would like to see Ingold when he is in Europe and also was interested to read his Bakerian lectures. [Ingold's letter to LP March 14, 1939; Ingold's reply to LP April 13, 1939] [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #181, Folder #181.3]
• Letter from LP to F. R. Moulton, Permanent Secretary, American Association for the Advancement of Science RE: LP recommends that the Association publish the limnology papers as well as make a contract with a publisher concerning the symposia. [Previous letters March 3, 1939, March 9, 1939] [Filed under LP Science: Box #14.001, Folder #1.2]
• Letter from LP to Henry Gilman, Iowa State College RE: LP does not have suggestions about the revised "Organic Chemistry." Sturdivant and Rundle have obtained small crystals of platinum tetramethyl from the sample Gilman sent. [Gilman's letter March 21, 1939] [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #136, Folder #136.11]
• Letter from LP to Mr. C. S. Lu RE: LP informs Lu that he would be very happy to have him as a quest of the Institute during the year 1939-1940. [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #218, Folder #218.7]
• Letter from LP to Paul A. Giguere RE: LP gives Giguere permission to carry on research at CIT for the next few months free of cost. [LP's next letter May 24, 1939] [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #140, Folder #140.4]
• Letter from LP to Professor A. Szent-Györgyi RE: LP looks forward to seeing him during the first week of June and asks about the titles of his lectures. [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #371, Folder #371.1]
• Letter from LP to Richard A. Rosanoff, Harlem Valley State Hospital RE: LP has written to the registrar about his readmission to CIT, but recommends he finish his undergraduate work elsewhere. [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #340, Folder #340.4]
• Letter from LP to Wheeler P. Davey, Pennsylvania State College RE: LP will not be able to go East this spring and therefore, cannot attend the committee meeting. [Davey's letter March 21, 1939] [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #98, Folder #98.4]
• Letter from LP to William C. Boyd, Boston University School of Medicine. [Reply to Boyd's letter of March 24, 1939]. [Boyd's letter February 34, 1939] [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #29, Folder #29.3]

  March 29, 1939

  Mr. William C. Boyd

  Associate Professor of Biochemistry

  Boston University School of Medicine

  80 East Concord Street

  Boston, Massachusetts

  Dear Professor Boyd:

  I don't know of any simple discussion of symmetry numbers in the literature. Those numbers enter in the statistical mechanical discussion of the thermodynamic properties of molecules, and they are referred to in the standard texts on statistical mechanics, but the discussions that I have found are far from clear. I think that if you could go over to the Harvard Chemical Laboratories and talk a few minutes with E. B. Wilson, Jr. or Kistiakowsky you could get the point straightened out. The symmetry number of a molecule is the number of ways in which the molecule can be brought into a given configuration by rotation. For example, a molecule of chloroform has symmetry number 3 corresponding to rotation around its three-fold axis. The symmetry number comes into thermodynamic calculations in a way such as the following: with four hemes in the corners of a square, the first oxygen molecule to attach itself to hemoglobin has a choice of four positions, corresponding to the symmetry number 4 for hemoglobin. Consequently we can see why the symmetry number 4 should introduce the equilibrium constant, as compared with the constant for attaching an oxygen molecule to a given heme.

  I think that symmetry numbers first came into the chemical literature about twenty-five years ago, when E. Q. Adams and Bjerrum independently derived the factor k for the first and second acid constants of a dibasic acid with acid groups far removed from one another. This factor 4 results from the symmetry number 2 for the acid HA---AH entering in one direction and that for the ion A- --- A- entering in the other direction.

  Sincerely yours,

  Linus Pauling

  LP/jr

• Letter from S. B. Schofield, Western Maryland College to LP RE: Announcing a chemistry teaching position opening at Western Maryland College. [LP's reply April 3, 1939] [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #377, Folder #377.9]
• Letter from Samuel B. Schofield to LP RE: Asks LP for assistance in filling a vacant position in the Chemistry Department at Western Maryland College. [LP's reply: April 3, 1939] [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #377, Folder #377.9]
• Note from Paul A. Giguere to LP RE: Giguere would like to begin work using CIT laboratories in the field of molecular structure as previously discussed with LP and has sent him his academic records as requested. [LP's reply March 29, 1939] [Filed under LP Correspondence: Box #140, Folder #140.4]