1 00:00:00,400 --> 00:00:02,240 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of I 2 00:00:02,360 --> 00:00:07,040 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hi, I'm Eves and Welcome to This Day 3 00:00:07,040 --> 00:00:10,920 Speaker 1: in History Class, a show that on covers history one 4 00:00:11,000 --> 00:00:24,079 Speaker 1: day at a time. Today is May twelve, nineteen. The 5 00:00:24,160 --> 00:00:28,600 Speaker 1: day was May twelfth, nineteen ten. Dorothy Hodgkin was born 6 00:00:28,760 --> 00:00:33,000 Speaker 1: Dorothy Mary Crowfoot in Cairo, Egypt, to Grace Mary Crowfoot 7 00:00:33,120 --> 00:00:37,000 Speaker 1: and John Winter Crowfoot. Hodgkin would go on to become 8 00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:42,440 Speaker 1: a Nobel Prize winning chemist and dedicated humanitarian. Dorothy had 9 00:00:42,479 --> 00:00:45,680 Speaker 1: three sisters, all younger than her. When the First World 10 00:00:45,680 --> 00:00:49,040 Speaker 1: War broke out in nineteen fourteen, Dorothy and her siblings 11 00:00:49,040 --> 00:00:51,360 Speaker 1: went to England, where they lived in the care of 12 00:00:51,400 --> 00:00:55,600 Speaker 1: a caretaker and their paternal grandparents. Her parents worked in 13 00:00:55,680 --> 00:00:59,080 Speaker 1: North Africa and the Middle East in education and archaeology. 14 00:00:59,640 --> 00:01:02,440 Speaker 1: Though they lived and worked abroad, they would visit their 15 00:01:02,440 --> 00:01:06,000 Speaker 1: family in England every year. Around the age of ten, 16 00:01:06,319 --> 00:01:10,360 Speaker 1: Dorothy became interested in chemistry and crystals. One of her 17 00:01:10,360 --> 00:01:14,360 Speaker 1: father's friends, Dr A. F. Joseph, encouraged this interest by 18 00:01:14,360 --> 00:01:18,280 Speaker 1: giving her chemicals and helped her analyze minerals. When she 19 00:01:18,400 --> 00:01:21,080 Speaker 1: was a teenager, her mother gave her the book Concerning 20 00:01:21,120 --> 00:01:24,559 Speaker 1: the Nature of Things by William Henry Bragg, in which 21 00:01:24,600 --> 00:01:28,600 Speaker 1: the author discussing individual adams and molecules using X rays. 22 00:01:29,680 --> 00:01:33,039 Speaker 1: Dorothy it was intrigued. While she attended the Sir John 23 00:01:33,120 --> 00:01:36,760 Speaker 1: Lehmann School at Beccles in England, she and another student 24 00:01:36,840 --> 00:01:40,240 Speaker 1: named Nora were allowed to take chemistry classes, which were 25 00:01:40,319 --> 00:01:45,319 Speaker 1: normally only for boys. Dorothy's early enthusiasm for chemistry would 26 00:01:45,319 --> 00:01:50,120 Speaker 1: turn into a lifelong profession and passion. After brushing up 27 00:01:50,120 --> 00:01:54,560 Speaker 1: on Latin and botany, Dorothy got into Oxford University. From 28 00:01:55,640 --> 00:01:59,880 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty two, Dorothy went to Somerville College, Oxford, earning 29 00:02:00,160 --> 00:02:04,559 Speaker 1: first class honors degree in chemistry. While she was at Somerville, 30 00:02:04,720 --> 00:02:08,280 Speaker 1: she decided to work on X ray crystallography. She would 31 00:02:08,280 --> 00:02:11,720 Speaker 1: crystallize substances, shoot X rays at them, and study the 32 00:02:11,760 --> 00:02:15,320 Speaker 1: way X rays defracted off of the crystals. After she 33 00:02:15,400 --> 00:02:18,920 Speaker 1: graduated from Somerville, Dorothy moved on to get her doctorate 34 00:02:18,960 --> 00:02:22,239 Speaker 1: at Cambridge University, where she did research in the Department 35 00:02:22,280 --> 00:02:27,680 Speaker 1: of Mineralogy with British physicist John Desmond Vernal. In that lab, 36 00:02:27,960 --> 00:02:32,200 Speaker 1: Dorothy studied steriles, which are solid steroid alcohols, and the 37 00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:35,480 Speaker 1: X ray diffraction of PEPs in the enzyme and gastric 38 00:02:35,560 --> 00:02:39,639 Speaker 1: juice that breaks down proteins into polypeptides. She went back 39 00:02:39,680 --> 00:02:42,600 Speaker 1: to Somerville in nineteen thirty four after the college gave 40 00:02:42,600 --> 00:02:46,600 Speaker 1: her a research fellowship. In nineteen thirty six, she was 41 00:02:46,639 --> 00:02:50,520 Speaker 1: awarded a permanent fellowship at Somerville College. She got her 42 00:02:50,560 --> 00:02:54,440 Speaker 1: PhD in nineteen thirty seven. That same year, Dorothy married 43 00:02:54,520 --> 00:02:59,760 Speaker 1: historian Thomas Hodgkin. The couple had three children together, but 44 00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:04,320 Speaker 1: Dorothy Hodgkin is most known for her work with penicillin, insulin, 45 00:03:04,520 --> 00:03:08,400 Speaker 1: and vitamin B twelve. In nineteen forty six, she and 46 00:03:08,480 --> 00:03:12,360 Speaker 1: her graduate student Barbara Lowe figured out the structure of penicillin, 47 00:03:12,800 --> 00:03:16,280 Speaker 1: notably using one of the first IBM analog computers to 48 00:03:16,320 --> 00:03:21,359 Speaker 1: help with the analysis. This helped manufacturers create semisynthetic penicillin. 49 00:03:22,240 --> 00:03:25,400 Speaker 1: Hodgkin and a team of researchers published the structure of 50 00:03:25,400 --> 00:03:29,400 Speaker 1: B twelve in nineteen fifty seven. In nineteen sixty four, 51 00:03:29,720 --> 00:03:33,880 Speaker 1: Hodgkin won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for her quote 52 00:03:34,240 --> 00:03:38,000 Speaker 1: determinations by X ray techniques of the structures of important 53 00:03:38,040 --> 00:03:43,440 Speaker 1: biochemical substances. The next year, she received Britain's Order of Merit, 54 00:03:43,680 --> 00:03:47,440 Speaker 1: which recognizes people for their service in science, literature and 55 00:03:47,560 --> 00:03:51,120 Speaker 1: other fields, and by nineteen sixty nine, when X ray 56 00:03:51,160 --> 00:03:53,920 Speaker 1: diffraction in high speed computing had advanced to the point 57 00:03:53,920 --> 00:03:56,480 Speaker 1: where she needed it to be, Hodgkin and a team 58 00:03:56,520 --> 00:04:01,600 Speaker 1: of researchers discovered the structure of insulin. In nineteen seventy seven, 59 00:04:01,960 --> 00:04:06,040 Speaker 1: Hodgkin retired from her Wolfson Research Professorship, which she had 60 00:04:06,040 --> 00:04:10,040 Speaker 1: obtained in nineteen sixty But outside of her scientific work, 61 00:04:10,360 --> 00:04:15,400 Speaker 1: she was also involved in various organizations and social activism. 62 00:04:15,480 --> 00:04:18,039 Speaker 1: She was the president of the British Association for the 63 00:04:18,120 --> 00:04:21,680 Speaker 1: Advancement of Science for a year and the chancellor of 64 00:04:21,720 --> 00:04:25,800 Speaker 1: Bristol University for nearly two decades. She also spoke out 65 00:04:25,800 --> 00:04:29,400 Speaker 1: against nuclear weapons and the Vietnam War, and was president 66 00:04:29,440 --> 00:04:32,599 Speaker 1: of the pub Wash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, 67 00:04:32,680 --> 00:04:37,240 Speaker 1: an international organization that aims to find solutions and global security, 68 00:04:37,600 --> 00:04:41,800 Speaker 1: reduced arm conflict, and promote policy development. Her work with 69 00:04:41,880 --> 00:04:45,560 Speaker 1: peace organizations did get her in trouble sometimes because of 70 00:04:45,560 --> 00:04:48,920 Speaker 1: her affiliation with the communist friendly groups Science for Peace. 71 00:04:49,279 --> 00:04:51,960 Speaker 1: Hodgkin had been denied a visa to the US in 72 00:04:52,080 --> 00:04:55,520 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty three, only to be allowed into the country 73 00:04:55,640 --> 00:04:59,200 Speaker 1: later with special permission and to finally have her visa 74 00:04:59,240 --> 00:05:04,240 Speaker 1: restriction lifted in nineteen nine. In nineteen eight seven, Hodgkin 75 00:05:04,360 --> 00:05:07,320 Speaker 1: was awarded the Order of Linen, which was given for 76 00:05:07,360 --> 00:05:11,440 Speaker 1: achievements in art, research, technology or economics and was the 77 00:05:11,520 --> 00:05:15,760 Speaker 1: highest civilian award in the Soviet Union. Hodgkin had been 78 00:05:15,760 --> 00:05:18,720 Speaker 1: diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis when she was in her twenties, 79 00:05:18,960 --> 00:05:22,159 Speaker 1: but in her later years her medical condition interfered with 80 00:05:22,200 --> 00:05:27,000 Speaker 1: her ability to work. Dorothy Hodgkin died in nineteen four 81 00:05:27,480 --> 00:05:31,600 Speaker 1: after having a stroke. Her work and understanding the structure 82 00:05:31,640 --> 00:05:35,560 Speaker 1: of biological molecules had a major effect on biochemistry and 83 00:05:35,760 --> 00:05:39,840 Speaker 1: modern medicine. I'm Eve Steff Coote and hopefully you know 84 00:05:39,960 --> 00:05:43,680 Speaker 1: a little more about history today than you did yesterday. 85 00:05:44,440 --> 00:05:48,159 Speaker 1: And here's one more fun fact. Hodgkin was former UK 86 00:05:48,279 --> 00:05:52,159 Speaker 1: Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's tutor in chemistry at Somerville College 87 00:05:52,560 --> 00:05:56,640 Speaker 1: and the two stayed friends throughout their lives. You can 88 00:05:56,760 --> 00:06:01,520 Speaker 1: follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at t d 89 00:06:01,600 --> 00:06:06,560 Speaker 1: i h C podcast. Thank you again for listening, and 90 00:06:06,720 --> 00:06:20,440 Speaker 1: we'll see you here tomorrow. For more podcasts from My 91 00:06:20,480 --> 00:06:23,159 Speaker 1: Heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app Apple podcasts, 92 00:06:23,200 --> 00:06:24,960 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.