Nobel Laureate Dr. Linus Pauling in New York City on Jan. 13, 1958.
AP Photo / AP
Every year on Feb. 28, Oregon commemorates the life of Linus Pauling, a Portland-born and Oregon State University-educated scientist.
Pauling became a well-known figure in Oregon and around the world for his contributions to chemistry, advocacy for nuclear disarmament and (perhaps overly) enthusiastic embrace of vitamin C.
Pauling was born in Portland on Feb. 28, 1901. He spent his early childhood in Condon before moving back to the Rose City, where he attended Washington High School. He studied chemical engineering at OSU and later earned a doctorate in chemistry at Caltech.
Pauling won his first Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1954. His prize-winning research focused on the nature of chemical bonds. One of his foremost accomplishments was helping to create a model of the alpha helix, a key structure in proteins. (A red alpha helix statue stands in front of Pauling’s childhood home in Southeast Portland.)
Pauling’s second Nobel was the 1962 Nobel Peace Prize for his antinuclear advocacy. He fought vehemently against the global spread of nuclear weapons, so much so that he was long labeled a communist.
He is the only person to win two unshared Nobel Prizes.
Linus Pauling spent the tail end of his life promoting the benefits of vitamin C (many of his claims about which were later debunked) and healthy eating.
Pauling died in 1994 at the age of 93. Gov. Barbara Roberts that year signed a proclamation declaring Feb. 28 Linus Pauling Day in Oregon.
For more on the life and legacy of Linus Pauling, watch OPB’s hourlong documentary from “Oregon Experience” here. For a recipe inspired by the man himself, OPB’s “Superabundant” has one for you here.
