| Sir John Cornforth | |
|---|---|
| Born | 7
September 1917 Sydney, Australia |
| Nationality | Australia |
| Fields | Chemistry |
| Institutions | University of Sussex |
| Alma mater | University of Sydney St Catherine's College, Oxford |
| Known for | Stereochemistry of enzyme-catalyzed reactions |
| Notable awards | Corday-Morgan medal (1949) Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1975) Royal Medal (1976) Copley Medal (1982) |
Sir John Warcup 'Kappa' Cornforth, AC, CBE, FRS (born 7 September 1917), is an Australian scientist who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1975 for his work on the stereochemistry of enzyme-catalyzed reactions.
He has been deaf since his teens.
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Cornforth was born in Sydney, and educated at Sydney Boys High School and the University of Sydney (from 16 years of age) where he met his wife Rita Harradence.
He studied organic chemistry in the School of Chemistry at the University of Sydney and graduated with first-class honours and the University medal in 1938.[1] He won a scholarship to study at St Catherine's College, Oxford, and moved there with Rita.
His mother, Hilda Eipper (1887-1969), was the granddaughter of Christopher Eipper.
Cornforth had a profound influence on the work on penicillin during the war. He helped to write The Chemistry of Penicillin (Princeton University Press, 1949), He received his Nobel Prize with Vladimir Prelog in 1975 and was knighted in 1977. He was awarded the Corday-Morgan medal in 1953, Royal Medal in 1976 and the Copley Medal in 1982.
He is a member of the Royal Society and is still very active in chemistry research at the University of Sussex. He was named the Australian of the Year in 1975, jointly with Major General Alan Stretton.
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Sir Bernard Heinze |
Australian
of the Year Award 1975 Served alongside: Major General Alan Stretton |
Succeeded by Sir Edward 'Weary' Dunlop |
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   | How to be right and wrong with John Cornforth by The Vega Science Trust - The Vega Science Trust - How to be Right and Wrong |
| | Bio from nobelprize.org - John Cornforth - Autobiography |
| | "Master of the Molecules" - Profile by Julian Cribb in ''Cosmos Magazine'', 6 September 2006 - Master of the molecules | COSMOS magazine |
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