Letter from Linus Pauling to John Harris. December 4, 1950. Page 1  Larger Images / More Information. 1 p.  View Transcript

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Activity Listings

• Letter from Frank Aydelotte, Institute for Advanced Study, to LP RE: Discusses the times that LP proposed that they meet, either in February or April. Discusses the Rhodes scholars for 1951. States that he is sorry Peter is having problems and writes that everything related to undergraduate transfers between the U.S. and England is difficult. [Letters from LP to Aydelotte, December 1, 1950 and December 14, 1950] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (Aydelotte, Frank, 1940-1955), #6.21]
• Letter from LP to Charles W. Tucker, Research Laboratory, General Electric, RE: Explains the history of the work on the structure of the sigma phase of uranium. [Letter from Tucker to LP, November 25, 1950] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (T: Correspondence, 1950), #410.15]
• Letter from LP to John W. Harris, Thorndike Memorial Laboratory, Boston City Hospital. [Filed under LP Correspondence: (H: Correspondence, 1950), #166.1]

  December 4, 1950

  Dr. John W. Harris

  Thorndike Memorial Laboratory

  Boston City Hospital

  Boston, Massachusetts

  Dear Dr. Harris:

  I have been interested to see your paper in the October issue of the Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine. Dr. Rich has told me about your results after his return from Woods Hole.

  Dr. Itano and our other collaborators and I are planning to send a letter to Nature about sickle cell anemia. A paper by Peruts and Mitchison appeared in Nature, in which there is a discussion of the mechanism that we had described in detail, in such a way, however, as to indicate to the reader that it is new. The only element of novelty in it, so far as I can see, is the statement that the phenomenon involves crystallization of the hemoglobin. In our discussions we have described this as pseudo-crystallization, or aggregation or a sort of crystallization.

  Some experimental results that we have obtained with use of the ultracentrifuge indicate that sickle cell anemia hemoglobin undergoes aggregation not in the form of crystals, but in another form. This is, of course, what you communicate in your paper, and your discussion of the mechanism is also based on our proposal.

  I am writing now to find out from you whether you feel that your experiments have shown unambiguously that the birefrigent aggregates that you obtain are indeed tactoids rather than crystals. I know that there is some difficulty in distinguishing microscopic tactoids from microscopic crystals, and I would be grateful to you for telling me how confident you are that you are observing tactoids, rather than crystals.

  Sincerely yours,

  Linus Pauling:W

  P.S. Would you also send me a reprint of your note. LP.

• Letter from LP to Lev Akobjanoff RE: Reurns Akobjanoff’s manuscript on polysulfide elastomers and encloses a reprint of his own on a similar subject. Gives his comments and suggestions concerning Akobjanoff’s report. [Letter from Akobjanoff November 28, 1950] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (A: Correspondence, 1950), #12.16]
• Letter from LP to Miss Margaret D. Cameron, Department of Chemistry at the Tulane University of Louisiana, RE: Encloses a blank that she may use to apply for a post-doctoral fellowship at CIT. Explains that they have a few fellowships under the supervision of the Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering at CIT and that most of their post-doctoral fellows are there with the support from outside groups. Says that they also have some funds for research carried out by staff members and that they sometimes appoint post-doctoral fellows to assist with the research of these staff members. [Handwritten note from Cameron to LP, November 9, 1950] [Filed under LP Biographical: Academia: (CIT: Materials re: Division of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, 1946-1956.), Box #1.020, Folder #20.5]
• Letter from LP to N.V. Sidgwick, Lincoln College, RE: Updates him on the new discoveries in their laboratories. Explains how it is possible to convert white phosphorus into red phosphorus and discusses the process by which he saw it take place. States that this information will enable him to predict the structure of red phosphorus and how it can be converted into black phosphorus. [Filed under LP Correspondence: (Sidgwick, N. V.), #364.1]
• Letter from LP to Ralph Hultgren, Division of Mineral Technology, University of California, Berkeley, RE: Asks for powder photographs of phosphorus and red phosphorus which are referred to in Hultgren’s paper with Gingrich and Warren. States that Dr. M Simonetta and he are publishing a paper on phosphorus. [Letter from Hultgren to LP, December 20, 1950] [Filed under LP Correspondence: (Hultgren, Ralph), #163.3]
• Note from J. A. Hedvall to LP RE: Thanks LP for the letter and discusses his visit to Pasadena. States that he still hopes to meet LP personally and talks about upcoming stops on his tour. Discusses his lecture and states that he thinks it would have been better to give two lectures. [Filed under LP Correspondence: (Eli Lilly and Company), #111.4]