Seaborg, Glenn Theodore 1912-

Seaborg was born on Apr. 19, 1912 in Ishpeming, MI; AB, UCLA, 1934; Ph. D, UC Berkeley, 1937; research assoc. (1937-39), instructor (1939-41), asst. professor (1941-45), prof. of chemistry (1945-71), univ. professor beginning in 1971, UC Berkeley; director of plutonium work for Manhattan Project at Univ. of Chicago Metallurgical Laboratory (1942-46); head of Nuclear Chemistry Division (1946-58 and 1971-75), and assoc. director of laboratory, 1954-61 and again beginning in 1971, Lawrence Berkeley Lab; member of first general advisory committee, US Atomic Energy Commission (1946-50), member of historical advisory committee (1958-61), and commission chairman (1961-71); chancellor, UC Berkeley, 1958-61; won Nobel Prize in chemistry (shared with Edwin M. McMillan), 1951; credited with the discovery of plutonium and nine other new elements (atomic numbers 94-102 and 106), the last of which was named "seaborgium;" published books and over 250 articles and papers; he died Feb. 1999.

From the description of Diaries, 1927-1946. (University of California, Los Angeles). WorldCat record id: 40946404

Research chemist, college president, educator, chairman of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, Nobel prize winner.

From the description of Audio materials, 1961-1985 [sound recording]. 1961-1985. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 40723091

Scientist, public official, and educator; died 1999.

From the description of Glenn Theodore Seaborg papers, 1866-1999 (bulk 1940-1998). (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 70983328

Chemist.

From the description of Reminiscences of Glenn Theodore Seaborg : oral history, 1963. (Columbia University In the City of New York). WorldCat record id: 122528175

Both Glenn T. Seaborg and Darleane C. Hoffman served as Division Directors for the Nuclear Chemistry Division of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, California. During Seaborg's tenure many discoveries were made in the realm of the heavy elements and there were numerous controversies with the staff of the Russian facility at Dubna over priority of discovery.

From the description of A selection of records from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Nuclear Division, 1964-2003 (Chemical Heritage Foundation). WorldCat record id: 428818554

Glenn Theodore Seaborg (1912-1999), research chemist, educator, and government official, was Chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission from 1961 to 1971.

From the description of Seaborg, Glenn T. (Glenn Theodore), 1912-1999 (U.S. National Archives and Records Administration). naId: 10580887

Biographical Note

• 1912, Apr. 19: Born, Ishpeming, Mich.
• 1934: A.B., University of California, Los Angeles, Calif.
• 1937: Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley, Calif.
• 1940 - 1974 : Codiscovered numerous atomic elements including plutonium (1940), curium (1944), americium (1944-1945), berkelium (1949), californium (1950), eisensteinium (1952), fermium (1953), mendelevium (1955), nobelium (1958), and seaborgium (1974)
• 1941 - 1971 : Assistant professor and professor, Chemistry Department, University of California, Berkeley, Calif.
• 1942 - 1946 : Section chief in charge of plutonium chemistry, Manhattan Project, Metallurgical Laboratory, University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill.
• 1944: Developed the actinide concept of heavy element electronic structure
• 1945: Signed report written by James Franck urging the United States not to drop the atomic bomb on Japan Inadvertently announced the recent discovery of two new chemical elements on “Quiz Kids” radio program
• 1946 - 1950 : Member, General Advisory Committee, Atomic Energy Commission
• 1950 - 1955 : Consultant, Technical Advisory Panel on Atomic Energy, Defense Department Research and Development Board
• 1951: Awarded with Edwin M. McMillan Nobel Prize in chemistry for the discovery of plutonium
• 1953 - 1958 : Faculty athletic representative, Pacific Coast Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
• 1954 - 1961 : Associate director, Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, Berkeley, Calif.
• 1957: Published with Joseph J. Katz The Chemistry of the Actinide Elements (New York: John Wiley and Sons. 508 pp.)
• 1958 - 1961 : Chancellor, University of California, Berkeley, Calif.
• 1959 - 1961 : Member, President's Science Advisory Committee
• 1959 - 1974 : Chairman, Chemical Education Material (CHEMStudy) Steering Committee
• 1960 - 1961 : Member, National Science Board, National Science Foundation
• 1961 - 1971 : Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission
• 1963: Chairman, United States delegation for signing the “Memorandum on Cooperation in the Field of Utilization of Atomic Energy for Peaceful Purposes,” Moscow, USSR Member, United States delegation for signing the Limited Test Ban Treaty, Moscow, USSR
• 1964: Chairman, United States delegation, Third United Nations International Conference on the Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy, Geneva, Switzerland
• 1971: Appointed university professor, Chemistry Department, University of California, Berkeley, Calif. President, Fourth United Nations International Conference on the Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy, Geneva, Switzerland Published with William R. Corliss Man and Atom: Building a New World through Nuclear Technology (New York: E. P. Dutton & Co. 411 pp.)
• 1972: President, American Association for the Advancement of Science
• 1976: President, American Chemical Society
• 1981: Published with Benjamin S. Loeb Kennedy, Khrushchev, and the Test Ban (Berkeley, Calif.: University of California Press. 320 pp.)
• 1981 - 1983 : Member, National Commission on Excellence in Education
• 1982 - 1998 : Cofounder, director, and chairman, Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California, Berkeley, Calif.
• 1987: Published with Benjamin S. Loeb Stemming the Tide: Arms Control in the Johnson Years (Lexington, Mass.: Lexington Books. 495 pp.)
• 1993: Published with Benjamin S. Loeb The Atomic Energy Commission under Nixon: Adjusting to Troubled Times (New York: St. Martin's Press. 268 pp.)
• 1994: International Union of Pure and Applied Chemisty approved the name “seaborgium” for atomic element 106
• 1998: Published A Chemist in the White House: From the Manhattan Project to the End of the Cold War (Washington, D.C.: American Chemical Society. 341 pp.)
• 1999, Feb. 25: Died, Lafayette, Calif.

From the guide to the Glenn Theodore Seaborg Papers, 1866-1999, (bulk 1940-1998), (Manuscript Division Library of Congress)

Biography

Seaborg was born on April 19, 1912 in Ishpeming, Michigan; AB, UCLA, 1934; Ph.D, University of California at Berkeley, 1937; research associate (1937-39), instructor (1939-41), assistant professor (1941-45), professor of chemistry (1945-71), university professor beginning in 1971, University of California at Berkeley; director of plutonium work for Manhattan Project at University of Chicago Metallurgical Laboratory (1942-46); head of Nuclear Chemistry Division (1946-58 and 1971-75), and associate director of laboratory, 1954-61 and again beginning in 1971, Lawrence Berkeley Lab; member of first general advisory committee, U.S. Atomic Energy Commission (1946-50), member of historical advisory committee (1958-61), and commission chairman (1961-71); chancellor, University of California at Berkeley, 1958-61; won Nobel Prize in chemistry (shared with Edwin M. McMillan), 1951; credited with the discovery of plutonium and nine other new elements (atomic numbers 94-102 and 106), the last of which was named seaborgium; published books and over 250 articles and papers; he died February 1999.

From the guide to the Glenn Theodore Seaborg Diaries, 1927-1946, (University of California, Los Angeles. Library. Department of Special Collections.)