Letter from Linus Pauling to Alexander Rich. September 7, 1955. Page 1  Larger Images / More Information. 1 p.  View Transcript

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Activity Listings

• Letter from Beatrice Wulf, Secretary to LP, to Dr. Hans Nowotny, Division of Mineral Technology, University of California, Berkeley, RE: Has made a reservation for Nowotny at the Athenaeum for September 11 - 13. Gives the address. LP is looking forward to seeing Nowotny on the morning of September 12. [Letter from Nowotny to LP September 2, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (N: Correspondence), #287.22]
• Letter from Dr. Cornelius H. Siemens, Humboldt State College, to LP RE: Professor Martin Watkins invited LP to speak on the subject of "The Development of American Science" during Humboldt's American Heritage Week, February 13-17, 1956. This letter confirms the invitation. Describes the purpose of the American Heritage Week. If LP accepts the invitation, Siemens would like to know LP's fee. [Letter from LP to Siemens October 6, 1955] [Filed under LP Speeches: 1956s.6]
• Letter from Dr. S. Horwood Tucker, Chemistry Dept., The University, Glasgow, Scotland, to LP RE: Tucker and Dr. R.I. Reed have written an elementary testbook for students entitled "Electronic Theory and Reaction Mechanism." Requests permission to use two figures from LP's The Nature of the Chemical Bond. Will also obtain permission from the Cornell University Publishing Department. [Letter from LP to Tucker September 14, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (T: Correspondence, 1936-1955), #410.20]
• Letter from Esther Everett Lape, The American Foundation Studies, to LP RE: Appreciated LP reading the proofs and sending corrections. The page proofs of the first volume are beyond recall, but Lape has asked the printer to make the most important corrections for these also. Wonders if LP will be in the east in early November. Planning a dinner, not for publicity of the publication, but to focus attention on the central purpose of the report — to convey that basic research is essential to the solution of medical problems. Requesting that several of the members of the Committee of Consultants speak briefly. Asks for suggestions of other speakers. Had Paul Weiss in mind. [Letter from LP to Lape September 2, 1955, September 14, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (Am - Am)), #10.1]
• Letter from LP to Alex Rich, University of Cambridge, RE: Writes that Rich's proposed structure for trigonal polyglycine looks good to him and that it isn't a structure LP has constructed. States that he is glad Rich's RNA work is going well. [Letter from Rich to LP August 28, 1955] [Filed under LP Research Notebooks: 28R]
• Letter from LP to Dr. Alexander Rich, Cavendish Laboratory, Physics Dept., University of Cambridge. [Letter from Rich to LP August 28, 1955, October 1, 1955] [Filed under LP Science: Box #6.004, Folder #4.20] [Also filed under LP Correspondence: (R: Individual Correspondence. (Reynolds - Riley)), #329.3]

  7 September 1955

  Dr. A . Rich

  Cavendish Laboratory

  Free School Lane

  Cambridge

  England

  Dear Alex:

  I was interested to receive your letter of 28 August, especially since the 27 August issue of NATURE has not yet arrived in Pasadena.

  Your proposed structure for trigonal polyglycine (polyglycine II) looks good to me. When your letter arrived I thought that it referred to a structure that I had constructed once, but on checking over my models I find that such a model is not at hand, and I think that probably my memory confused it with structure 17 described by Corey and me in our paper in Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. U.S., 37, 729 (1951). This is a tetragonal structure with a = 4.8 A and c = 10.4 A, composed of helixes with four residues per turn. We said in the publication that the structure is "not suited to formation of intramolecular or intermolecular hydrogen bonds (except possibly for polyglycine only, in a tetragonal framework with a = 4.8 A)." The calculated density is 1.58, approximately the same as for your structure.

  I am glad to hear that your RNA work is going along well, and also that you have been seeing Peter and Linda.

  With best regards, I am

  Sincerely yours,

  Linus Pauling:W

  Cc: Dr. Crick

  Prof. Corey

• Letter from LP to Dr. Allan D. Bass, Dept. of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Vanderbilt University, RE: Submits further information about Dr. Harvey A. Itano which was not contained in his nomination of Itano for the Theobald Smith Award, sent August 19, 1955. In 1954, Dr. Itano was promoted to Surgeon in the Public Health Services. When Dr. Itano received his B.S. degree from the University of California in 1942, he received the University Medal for being "the most distinguished graduate of the year." Sends six copies of this letter and hopes that it is not too late for it to be attached to the nomination. [Letter from Bass to LP August 26, 1955, November 18, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (I: Individual Correspondence. (Ibers - Itano)), #181.5]
• Letter from LP to Dr. Samuel Soloveichik, RE: Interested to read LP's manuscript on Oxidation Stages of Organic Aliphatic Compounds. Confused by some of Soloveichik's ideas. Thinks that Soloveichik needs to define his concept of oxidation stages more precisely. Suggests that Soloveichik begin with a definition of oxidation number, and by using the electronegativity scale, introduce some change that is satisfactory to Soloveichik. Dissatisfied with Soloveichik's system because it treats one of the two carbon atoms in cyanogen differently from the other. [Letter from Soloveichik to LP August 31, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (S: Correspondence, 1953-1956), #379.3]
• Letter from LP to Professor G. N. Ramachandran, Editor, Current Science, A. C. College of Technology, India, RE: Thanks Ramachandran for the invitation to prepare an article for Current Science. Regrets that he is too busy to accept the offer. [Filed under LP Correspondence: (Rabinowitch - Randall)), #326.4]
• Letter from LP to Professor R.E. Rundle, Chemistry Dept., Iowa State College, RE: Accepts invitation to deliver the Coover Lecture sometime this year. Plans to come through the Midwest in late March and again in late April or early May. Will set a definite date later. [Letter from . Rundle to LP August 30, 1955, September 15, 1955] [Filed under LP Speeches: 1956s.12]
• Letter from LP to War Dept., Boston Ordinance District, RE: In 1947, LP was sent Copy No. 29 of a report on a study of pure explosive compounds, Parts I and II, classification confidential. Has not been involved in work with the War Dept. for some time. Returns copies of the report. Requests that the enclosed receipt be signed and returned. [Filed under LP Correspondence: (W: Correspondence, 1953-1959), #444.3]
• Letter from Professor J.A. Campbell, Oberlin College, to LP RE: Still cannot see how a boat could sail directly into the wind. Elaborates on his thoughts on this topic. Hopes that LP can visit Oberlin sometime. [Letter from LP to Campbell August 11, 1955, November 16, 1955] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (C: Individual Correspondence. (Caen - Cassyd)), #57.7]
• Letter from Professor Melvin Calvin, Radiation Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, to LP RE: Cannot attend the Molecular Structure and Biological Specificity Symposium because he has previous engagements in England on the same dates. [Letter from Calvin to LP August 8, 1955, September 14, 1955] [Filed under LP Speeches: 1955s.24]
• Proposal from the City of Hope Medical Center, Biochemistry Dept., to the National Science Foundation, RE: Studies on the Concentrative Assimilation of Amino Acids. [Filed under LP Correspondence: (C: Organizational Correspondence. (Ch - Ci)), #70.9]