Below are the first 10 and last 10 pages of uncorrected machine-read text (when available) of this chapter, followed by the top 30 algorithmically extracted key phrases from the chapter as a whole.
Intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text on the opening pages of each chapter.
Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
Do not use for reproduction, copying, pasting, or reading; exclusively for search engines.
OCR for page R1
OPPORTUNITIES IN
unemlslr~
TODAY AND TOMORROW L/
GEORGE C. PIMENTEL
University of California
Berkeley
JANICE A. COONROD
Lawrence Hall of Science
Berkeley
NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS
Washington, D.C. 1987
OCR for page R2
NATIONAL ACADEMY PRESS, 2101 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20418
NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National
Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the
National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible
for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to procedures approved by a
Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National
Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine.
The National Academy of Sciences is a pnvate, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished
scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and
technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the
Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific
and technical matters. Dr. Frank Press is president of the National Academy of Sciences.
The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy
of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in
the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering
programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior
achievements of engineers. Dr. Robert M. White is president of the National Academy of Engineering.
The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the
services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the
health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences
by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify
issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Samuel O. Thier is president of the Institute of Medicine.
The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate
the broad community of science and technology with the Academy's purposes of furthering knowledge and
advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the
Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences
and the National Academy of Eng~neenng in providing services to the government, the public, and the
scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the
Institute of Medicine. Dr. Frank Press and Dr. Robert M. White are chairman and vice chairman,
respectively, of the National Research Council.
Copyright @1987 by the National Academy of Sciences
No part of this book may be reproduced by any mechanical, photographic, or electronic process, or in the
form of a phonographic recording, nor may it be stored in a retrieval system, transmitted, or otherwise copied
for public or private use, without written permission from the publisher, except for the purposes of official use
by the United States Government.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Pimentel, George C.
Opportunities in chemistry.
Bibliography: p.
Includes index.
1. Chemistry Research United States. I. Coonrod, Janice A. II. Title. III. Title: Chemistry, today and
tomorrow.
QD47.P56 1987
ISBN 0-309-03742-5
540'.72073 87-24000
Printed In the United States of America
First printing, November 1987
Second printing, April 1988
Third printing, January 1992
OCR for page R3
Acknowledgments
Support for the original Opportunities in Chemistry was provided by the American
Chemical Society, the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research under Grant No.
AFOSR-83-0323, the Council for Chemical Research, Inc., the Camille and Henry
Dreyfus Foundation, Inc., the U.S. Department of Energy under Grant No. DE-FGO2-
81ER10984, the National Institutes of Health under Grant No. CHE-8301035, the
National Bureau of Standards under Contract No. NB835BCA2075, and the National
Science Foundation under Grant No. CHE-8301035. Support was also provided by the
following industrial companies: Aluminum Company of America, AT&T Bell Labora-
tories, Calgon Corporation, Celanese Research Company, Dow Chemical Company,
Eastman Kodak Company, E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, Inc., Exxon
Corporation, General Electnc Company, GTE Laboratories, Inc., Johnson and John-
son Company, Mobay Chemical Company, Mobil Research and Development Corpo-
ration, Monsanto Company, Pfizer, Inc., Phillips Petroleum Company, PPG Industries,
Inc., Proctor and Gamble Company, Shell Development Company, Standard Oil
Company (Ohio), Stauffer Chemical Company, TRW, Inc., and U.S. Steel Corpora-
tion.
Additional financial support has made this volume possible. The National Academy
of Sciences contributed funds to subsidize the writing; and the American Chemical
Society, Council for Chemical Research, National Science Foundation, Robert A.
Welch Foundation, and a number of industrial companies provided support for
distribution of copies of Opportunities in Chemistry: Today and Tomorrow to high
school teachers, libraries, and selected students across the country.
All of this generous support is gratefully acknowledged. A special thanks is given to
Julian Systems, Inc., for their assistance. Finally, William Spindel's efforts and
encouragement in every step of this project were essential to its successful completion.
· -—
OCR for page R4
OCR for page R5
Preface
This book is based upon Opportunities in Chemistry, which described the
contemporary research frontiers of chemistry and the opportunities for the chem-
ical sciences to address society's needs. To accomplish that ambitious task, a
committee of 26 eminent scientists was selected under the auspices of the National
Research Council. The committee was broadly representative of the major subdis-
ciplines of chemistry, of geographic areas, and of the full range of academic,
industrial, and government research. These scientific leaders then called upon more
than 350 chemical researchers to suggest topics and prepare commissioned papers
on research at chemistry's frontiers. After 3 years of thoughtful deliberation,
Opportunities in Chemistry was completed in October 1985 and published by the
National Academy Press.
Now, we have revised Opportunities in Chemistry in an effort to make such a
comprehensive survey of modern chemistry more widely available. Our primary
goal has been to make the volume valuable to a different audience by reorganizing
the content, adjusting the technical vocabulary, and adding explanatory material
and supplementary reading suggestions. We believe that this new book, Opportu-
nities in Chemistry: Todlay and Tomorrow, will provide interesting resource
material and supplementary reading for high school advanced placement chemistry
courses and for college sciences courses developed for conscience majors. We are
confident that it will provide, as well, important background reading for chemistry
teachers at all precollege levels.
Finally, we hope that all those who want to look ahead to the promising future of
chemistry, who are intngued by the multitude of doors to be opened by advances
in chemistry, and who are concerned about finding the difficult balance between
maximizing benefits and minimizing problems, will find this volume illuminating
and relevant.
GEORGE C. PIMENTEE
JANICE A. COONROD
Berkeley, California
v
OCR for page R6
OCR for page R7
Contents
I. INTRODUCTION
No Deposit, No Return, No Problem, 4
II. ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY THROUGH CHEMISTRY
III. HUMAN NEEDS THROUGH CHEMISTRY
Whipping a Wicked Weed, 22
A. More Food, 23
Beauty Is Only Skin Deep, 35
B. New Processes, 36
A Lithium-Powered Heart, 47
C. More Energy, 48
Stone Age, Iron Age, Polymer Age, 62
D. New Products and Matenals, 63
Rx-Snake Bite, 76
E. Better Health, 77
A Pac-Man for Cholesterol, 91
F. Biotechnologies, 92
Magnetic Fluids Attractive Possibilities, 103
G. Economic Benefits, 104
IV. INTELLECTUAL FRONTIERS IN CHEMISTRY
The Time It Takes to Wag a Tail, I l6
A. Control of Chemical Reactions, ~17
Jack and the Soybean Stalk, 136
B. Dealing with Molecular Complexity, 137
Something for Nothing, 150
C. National Well-Being, 151
V. INSTRUMENTATION IN CHEMISTRY ....................
A Laser Flashlight, 168
A. Instrumentation for Study of Chemical Reactions, 169
The Ant That Doesn't Like f icorice, 177
.... 5
..... 21
.. Il5
... 167
·—
V11
OCR for page R8
· -—
V111
CONTENTS
B. Instrumentation Dealing with Molecular Complexity, 178
Cisplatin—The Strong, Silent Type, 190
C. Instrumentation and the National Well-Being, 191
Investigating Smog Soup, 202
VI. THE RISK/BENEFIT EQUATION IN CHEMISTRY
Libraries into Space, 222
VII. CAREER OPPORTUNITIES AND EDUCATION IN
CHEMISTRY
INDEX
03
223
229
