Ryoji Noyori: Research Should Be Fresh, Simple, and Clear

Lives in Chemistry—Lebenswerke in der Chemie

Ryoji Noyori, born in Kobe in 1938, accepted the challenge to look back upon his life. He saw himself living in poverty and often struggling during and after WW II. He saw his parents and their friends guiding and inspiring him. He saw himself climbing up the ranks at the universities in Kyoto and Nagoya, deeply embedded in the Japanese culture.

He saw himself conquering organic synthesis and asymmetric homogeneous catalysis as well as green chemistry. Formative was his time with Nobel laureate E. J. Corey at Harvard where he was exposed to a completely different culture. Back in Nagoya, Noyori’s scientific success continued and culminated in receiving the Nobel Prize in 2001.

His extraordinary care about Japan’s science led to his second career, first as President of RIKEN, Japan’s largest research institution, and then as a leading figure to many governmental and industrial organizations. The basis of all his activities is a deep sense of responsibility for the society at large and the next generation of scientists.

Table of Contents

(E-book available)
Hardcover 17 × 24 cm, 346 p., 316 fig., 39.80 €
ISBN 978-3-86225-135-3
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This series of autobiographies provides insights into the lives and thoughts of outstanding research scientists in the context of the times they lived in. What role does the continuous sequence of hypothesis, experiment, and interpretation play in top chemical research? What is the role of impulses from mentors, students, colleagues, and competitors? Successful scientists describe authentically and in a very personal way how innovation is created.