Herbert A.
Hauptman
Herbert Aaron Hauptman (February 14, 1917 –
October 23, 2011)[2] was an American mathematician Herbert A. Hauptman
and Nobel laureate.[3] He pioneered and developed a
mathematical method that has changed the whole field
of chemistry and opened a new era in research in
determination of molecular structures of crystallized
materials. Today, Hauptman's direct methods, which he
continued to improve and refine, are routinely used to
solve complicated structures. It was the application of
this mathematical method to a wide variety of
chemical structures that led the Royal Swedish
Academy of Sciences to name Hauptman and Jerome
Karle recipients of the 1985 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Hauptman in 2009
Born Herbert Aaron Hauptman
February 14, 1917
Life New York City, U.S.
Died October 23, 2011 (aged 94)
He was born in to a Jewish family in New York City,
Buffalo, New York, U.S.[1]
the oldest child of Leah (Rosenfeld) and Israel
Alma mater City College of New York (BS)
Hauptman.[4] He was married to Edith Citrynell since
November 10, 1940, with two daughters, Barbara Columbia University (MA)
University of Maryland, College
(1947) and Carol (1950).
Park (PhD)
He was interested in science and mathematics from an Spouse Edith Citrynell (m. 1940)
early age which he pursued at Townsend Harris High Children 2
School, graduated from the City College of New York
Awards Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1985)
(1937) and obtained an M.A. degree in mathematics
(jointly with Jerome Karle)
from Columbia University in 1939.
UNSW Dirac Medal (1991)
After the war he started a collaboration with Jerome Scientific career
Karle at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, Fields Mathematics
D.C., and at the same time enrolled in the Ph.D.
Institutions Hauptman-Woodward Medical
program at the University of Maryland, College Park.
Research Institute
He received his Ph.D. from the University of Maryland
University at Buffalo
in 1955 in physics, which is part of the University of
Maryland College of Computer, Mathematical, and
Natural Sciences.[5] This combination of mathematics and physical chemistry expertise enabled them to
tackle head-on the phase problem of X-ray crystallography. His work on this problem was criticized
because, at the time, the problem was believed unsolvable.[6] By 1955 he had received his Ph.D. in
mathematics, and they had laid the foundations of the direct methods in X-ray crystallography. Their
1953 monograph, "Solution of the Phase Problem I. The Centrosymmetric Crystal", contained the main
ideas, the most important of which was the introduction of probabilistic methods through a development
of the Sayre equation.
In 1970 he joined the crystallographic group of the Medical Foundation of Buffalo of which he was
research director in 1972. During the early years of this period he formulated the neighborhood principle
and extension concept. These theories were further developed during the following decades.
In 2003, as an atheist[7] and secular humanist, he was one of 22 Nobel laureates who signed the Humanist
Manifesto.[8]
Works
Hauptman has authored over 170 publications, including journal articles, research papers, chapters and
books. In 1970, Hauptman joined the crystallographic group of the Hauptman-Woodward Medical
Research Institute (formerly the Medical Foundation of Buffalo) of which he became research director in
1972. Until his death, he served as president of the Hauptman-Woodward Medical Research Institute as
well as research professor in the department of biophysical sciences and adjunct professor in the
department of computer science at the University at Buffalo. Prior to coming to Buffalo, he worked as a
mathematician and supervisor in various departments at the Naval Research Laboratory from 1947. He
received his B.S. from City College of New York, M.A. from Columbia University and Ph.D. from the
University of Maryland, College Park.[9]
Awards and titles
Belden Prize in Mathematics, City College of New York, 1936
Scientific Research Society of America, Pure Science Award, Naval Research Laboratory,
1959
President, Philosophical Society of Washington, 1969–1970
President of the Association of Independent Research Institutes, 1979–1980
Patterson Award in 1984 given by the American Crystallographic Association
Nobel Prize in Chemistry, 1985 (jointly with Jerome Karle)
Honorary degrees from the University of Maryland, College Park in 1985
Honorary degree from CCNY in 1986
Citizen of the Year Award, Buffalo Evening News, 1986
Norton Medal, SUNY, 1986
Schoellkopf Award, American Chemical Society (Western New York Chapter) 1986
Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement, 1986[10]
Cooke Award, SUNY, 1987
Establishment of the Eccles-Hauptman Student Award, SUNY in 1987
Election to the National Academy of Sciences in 1988
Humanist Laureate Award from the International Humanist and Ethical Union in 1988
Honorary degree from the University of Parma, Italy in 1989
Honorary degree from the D'Youville College, Buffalo, New York in 1989
Honorary degree from Bar-Ilan University, Israel in 1990
Honorary degree from Columbia University in 1990
Honorary degree from Technical University of Lodz, Poland in 1992
Honorary degree from Queen's University, Kingston, Canada in 1993
Honorary degree from SUNY at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York in 2009
See also
List of Jewish Nobel laureates
References
1. Grimes, William (October 24, 2011). "Herbert A. Hauptman, Nobel Laureate, Dies at 94" (htt
ps://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/25/us/herbert-a-hauptman-nobel-winning-mathematician-die
s-at-94.html?_r=1). The New York Times.
2. Giacovazzo, Carmelo (2011). "Herbert Hauptman (1917–2011)" (https://doi.org/10.1038%2F
479300a). Nature. 479 (7373): 300. Bibcode:2011Natur.479..300G (https://ui.adsabs.harvar
d.edu/abs/2011Natur.479..300G). doi:10.1038/479300a (https://doi.org/10.1038%2F479300
a). PMID 22094683 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22094683).
3. Dr. Herbert Hauptman, Nobel Prize winner, is dead at 94 (https://www.buffalonews.com/obit
uaries/article605235.ece)
4. "Herbert Hauptman" (https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/hauptman1.htm
l/). Jewish virtual library. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
5. "Herbert A. Hauptman – Biographical" (https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/1985/ha
uptman/biographical/). nobelprize.org. Stockholm: Nobel Media AB. 2020. Retrieved
April 18, 2020.
6. "Herbert Hauptman – The Joy of Science" (https://web.archive.org/web/20140201152948/htt
p://www.pointofinquiry.org/herbert_hauptman_the_joy_of_science/). Center for Inquiry.
March 31, 2006. Archived from the original (http://www.pointofinquiry.org/herbert_hauptman
_the_joy_of_science/) on February 1, 2014. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
7. "Outside the field of scientific research, he was known for his outspoken atheism: belief in
God, he once declared, is not only incompatible with good science, but is "damaging to the
wellbeing of the human race." " The Telegraph. [1] (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obitua
ries/science-obituaries/8853793/Herbert-Hauptman.html)
8. "Notable Signers" (https://web.archive.org/web/20121005105825/http://www.americanhuma
nist.org/Humanism/Humanist_Manifesto_III/Notable_Signers). Humanism and Its
Aspirations. American Humanist Association. Archived from the original (http://www.america
nhumanist.org/Humanism/Humanist_Manifesto_III/Notable_Signers) on October 5, 2012.
Retrieved October 2, 2012.
9. "Herbert Hauptman, Ph.D." (https://jewishbuffalohistory.org/a-z/hauptman-dr-herbert/)
jewishbuffalohistory.org. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
10. "Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement" (https://achievement.or
g/our-history/golden-plate-awards/#science-exploration). www.achievement.org. American
Academy of Achievement.
External links
Herbert A. Hauptman (https://www.nobelprize.org/laureate/262) on Nobelprize.org
Dr Hauptman's CV (https://web.archive.org/web/20060901064110/http://www.hwi.buffalo.ed
u/Faculty/Hauptman/Hauptman.html)
Pergament: A PBS portrait of Buffalo's Nobel winner Herbert Hauptman (https://www.buffalo
news.com/185/story/373710.html) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20080620225229/h
ttp://www.buffalonews.com/185/story/373710.html) June 20, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
Board of Science Advisors, The Buffalo International Film Festival, Buffalo, NY, United
States (https://web.archive.org/web/20090124000656/http://buffalofilmfestival.com/aboutus/
artsandscienceadvisors.html)
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