Oktay Sinanoğlu
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| Oktay Sinanoğlu | |
|---|---|
| Born | 25 February 1935 Bari, Italy |
| Residence | Turkey |
| Ethnicity | Turkish |
| Fields | Chemistry, Molecular Biology |
| Institutions | Yale University Harvard University (1961) Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi (1964) Yıldız Teknik Universitesi |
| Known for | Many Electron Theory of Atoms and Molecules (1961) Solvophobic Theory (1964) Network Theory (1974) Microthermodynamics (1981) Valency Interaction Formula Theory (1983) |
| Notable awards | Alfred P. Sloan prize (1962) Tübitak Science prize (1966) Alexander von Humboldt Science prize (1973) Sedat Simavi Prize (1977) |
Oktay Sinanoğlu is a Turkish scientist specializing in theoretical chemistry and molecular biology.
[edit] Biography
Sinanoğlu was born on February 25, 1935 in Bari, Italy where his father served as a consul general. In 1939 -by the commencement of World War II- the family returned to Turkey. In 1953, he attended TED Yenişehir Highschool in Ankara; after graduating he won a scholarship for chemistry education in the USA. In 1956, he graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in chemical engineering with the highest rank. In eight months, he graduated from MIT in 1957 with the highest degree. In two years, he finished his doctorate at the University of California at Berkeley. In 1960, Sinanoğlu started working as an associate professor at Yale University. He authored the "Many-Electron Theory of Atoms and Molecules"[1] in 1961 after solving a mathematical theorem that had been unsolved for 50 years. The same year, he earned the "Alfred P. Sloan" prize. Appointed professor in 1963 at the age of 28, he became the youngest person in the past century at Yale to attain the status of full professor. He got his second life-long chair in Yale in Molecular Biology.
Sinanoğlu was the first to earn the Alexander von Humboldt's Science Prize in 1973. In 1975, he won Japan's International Outstanding Scientist award. In the 1980s, he construed methods, then considered revolutionary, for predicting chemical behavior using simple pictures and periodic tables, and took his place in the Academy of Arts & Sciences. In 1993, he moved to Turkey to teach at the Yıldız Teknik Universitesi, and officially retired at the age of 67. His scientific research efforts continue.
He received several international and local awards concerning his scientific and social contributions and efforts. He has been to Asia and Latin America. He tried to establish communication between Japan, India and Turkey. Because of his efforts, he was given the title "Special Emissary" to Japan. He worked for improvements in education and purified language in Turkey for most of his life and strove to form a 'conscious generation'. He is an active 'protector' of the Turkish language. In his words: "Educating a nation without a national language is like committing suicide."
[edit] External links
- Quantum chemistry history
- His scientific studies
- Atom ve Moleküllerin Çok Elektronlu Teorisi / Many Electron Theory of Atoms and Molecules
