Biographical Memoirs Volume 76 (1999) / Chapter Skim
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Howard Ensign Simmons, Jr.
Howard Ensign Simmons, Jr.
Pages 314-339
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management career, as well as the life, of one of the leacling inclustrial research scientists of the twentieth century, who was cleeply involves! in the time of changing views of corporations towarc!
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clic! exemplary research in organic chemistry with I
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acceptec! a position in the Chemical Department (subsequently the Central Research Department)
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The success of the research in the manufacturing clepart ments in support of their businesses, along with an upper management decision to make Central Research inclependent of the operating departments, provided Central Research the opportunity to engage in many basic research programs that became the envy of the university chemical community. This is not to say that Central Research programs failer!
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not require substantial capital investments. This was true despite enormous growth in the knowlecige en c!
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in three-to five-year cycles, BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS 1i aquas available for characterization or much in the same way as many of us continually encounter on a smaller scale with personal computers. Aciclitional research costs also resultec!
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even its NMR spectrum has been taken.4 A discussion of some elements of the culture of DuPont's Central Research Department in Howarcl's time is perhaps worthy of mention here. One still adherer!
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An open-cloor policy was also a feature of the Central Research Department culture when Simmons came. This meant that, even up to the research director, everyone's floor was kept open at all times unless conficlential matters were being cliscussecI.
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of circulating proposec! publications to the operating departments for nonobjection to, if not outright approval of, before sencling the manuscripts to journals.5 There can be no doubt that the Central Research publication policy was a fabulous success for recruiting talentec!
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1970s, the Central Research Department hac! an extensive program uncler the direction of T
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Some of his most interesting experimental work was in his stucly of flexible bicycTic cliamines. This research was stimulatec!
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of DuPont's Ruclolph Pariser, Simmons became involves! in quantum mechanics, especially molecular orbital theory applier!
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co-workers.7 cloclecaheciran e It was in the character of Howarc! Simmons that, as his responsibility for research management increased, his interest in theoretical chemistry clic!
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It was further shown that combinatorial analysis of topological spaces provides a quantitative description of molecular complexity, as well as a cletailec! description of boncI-strength variations with molecules that agrees well with quantum-mechanical calculations.
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on while maintaining strong core efforts in exploratory organic chemistry, physical chemistry, analytical techniques, en c! catalysis.
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was in the forefront of use of supercomputer applications in quantum chemistry in support of basic research, atmospheric moclels relevant to ozone clepletion, en c! theoretical moclels of material properties in complex multiphase systems.
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starting new ones clo not square with the facts.~° The company, driven by rapidly changing business climates in the last thirty years, has often been in internal upheavals, with multiple periods of reorganization swinging between concentration, on one hancI, on profit centers, strategic business units, en c! the like and, on the other hancI, to selling off existing businesses, new acquisitions (the largest, Conoco)
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in acceptable time periods, along with the new! to make the manufacture of the company's existing line of products more efficient and more environmentally benign, as well as perceived neecis for better returns on stockhoicIers investment, lee!
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was a staunch political conservative with a high level of clisciain for most contemporary liberal thought. One conic!
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Simmons III for their help in providing valuable information and insights for this memoir, as well as the Chemical Heritage Foundation for access to, and permission to use material from, their H
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In Biographical Memoirs, vol.
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83:1657-64. 1964 Pariser-Parr theory: Quantum mechanical integrals from the benzene spectrum.
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Orbital Symmetry Papers. Washington, D.C.: American Chemical Society Publishers.
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338 BIOGRAPHICAL MEMOIRS isothiazole (3,4-f) -(1,2,3,4,5-pentathiepine-8-carbonitrile, and disodium 5-cyanoisothiazoledithiolate.
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