For his doctoral work, which concerned X-ray studies of inorganic crystal structure, he moved to the California Institute of Technology and by the time he graduated in 1925 he already published twelve scientific paper. He joined the faculty in 1927.
At the age 26, Pauling accepted an assistant professorship of chemistry at Caltech and became the youngest member of the faculty.
At Caltech, Pauling explored the structure and behavior of molecules and in 1939, published The Nature of the Chemical Bond and the Structure of Molecules and Crystals.
His research over involved many areas: chemical bonds, the race for the structure of DNA, sickle-cell anemia, the relationship between nutrition and mental health, vitamin C and the common cold.
In 1954 he won Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his research into the chemical structures of complex substances.
During world War II Pauling worked on explosives rocket propulsion and substitute for human blood. Oppenheimer offered him the chance to head up the chemistry division of the Manhattan Project but he declined.
He spent several years at the Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions at Santa Barbara and then return to academic, first at the University of California in San Diego then at Stanford University.
In 1972 he founded the Linus Pauling Institute of Science and Medicine in Palo Alto, where he centered his activity. He won the Noble Peace Prize in 1963 and he was the first scientific Nobel Laureate to also won Nobel Peace Prize.
Linus Pauling (1901-1994)
