Oral history interview with Mildred Cohn
- 1987-Dec-15 (First session)
- 1988-Jan-06 (Second session)
Oral history interview with Mildred Cohn
- 1987-Dec-15 (First session)
- 1988-Jan-06 (Second session)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.Mildred Cohn begins the interview by reflecting on her childhood, education, and family life, describing how she was prepared to enter college by age fourteen. She then discusses her undergraduate experience at Hunter College, recalling the difficulties she encountered as a woman in the sciences. She continues by recounting her graduate years at Columbia, where, after working for a short time at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, she began her work with isotopes in Urey's lab. She tells of her experience working with du Vigneaud at George Washington and Cornell universities and contrasts that with the much more independent atmosphere of the Cori's lab at Washington University in St. Louis. Finally she describes her years at the University of Pennsylvania and highlights the most fulfilling aspects of her work. She concludes with her analysis of the future of biochemistry and advice for those, especially women, interested in pursuing a career in the natural sciences.
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About the Interviewer
Leon Gortler is a professor of chemistry at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York. He holds AB and MS degrees from the University of Chicago and a PhD from Harvard University where he worked with Paul Bartlett. He has long been interested in the history of chemistry, in particular the development of physical organic chemistry, and has conducted over fifty oral and videotaped interviews with major American chemists.
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| Oral history number | 0080 |
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Interviewee biographical information
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Education
| Year | Institution | Degree | Discipline |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1931 | Hunter College | BA | Chemistry |
| 1932 | Columbia University | MS | Chemistry |
| 1938 | Columbia University | PhD | Chemistry |
Professional Experience
United States. National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
- 1932 to 1934
George Washington University
- 1937 to 1938 Research Associate
Cornell University. Joan and Sanford I. Weill Medical College
- 1938 to 1946 Research Associate in Biochemistry
Washington University (Saint Louis, Mo.)
- 1946 to 1958 Research Associate in Biochemistry, Medical School
- 1958 to 1960 Associate Professor of Biochemistry, Medical School
Harvard Medical School
- 1950 to 1951 Research Associate
University of Pennsylvania. School of Medicine
- 1960 to 1961 Associate Professor of Biophysics and Physical Biochemistry
- 1961 to 1978 Professor of Biophysics and Physical Biochemistry
- 1978 to 1982 Benjamin Rush Professor of Physiological Chemistry
- 1982 to 1989 Benjamin Rush Professor of Physiological Chemistry, Emeritus
Fox Chase Cancer Center
- 1982 to 1985 Senior Member
Honors
| Year(s) | Award |
|---|---|
| 1952 to 1958 | Established Investigator, American Heart Association |
| 1963 | Garvan Medal, American Chemical Society |
| 1964 to 1978 | Career Investigator, American Heart Association |
| 1971 | National Academy of Sciences |
| 1972 | American Philosophical Society |
| 1975 | ScD, Medical College of Pennsylvania |
| 1975 | Cresson Medal, Franklin Institute |
| 1977 | American Academy of Arts and Sciences |
| 1977 | Foreign Member, Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique, Paris, France |
| 1978 | ScD, Radcliffe College |
| 1979 | Award, International Organization of Women Biochemists |
| 1980 | Award, US Senior Scientist, Humboldt Foundation, Federal Republic of Germany |
| 1981 | ScD, Washington University, St. Louis |
| 1981 | Chancellor's Distinguished Visiting Professorship, University of California, Berkeley |
| 1982 | National Medal of Science |
| 1984 | ScD, University of Pennsylvania |
| 1984 | ScD, Brandeis University |
| 1984 | ScD, Hunter College |
| 1984 | Award, American Academy of Achievement |
| 1985 | ScD, University of North Carolina |
| 1985 to 1989 | Visiting Professor of Biological Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine |
| 1986 | Chandler Medal, Columbia University |
| 1987 | Distinguished Service Award, College of Physicians, Philadelphia |
| 1988 | Honorary National Member, Iota Sigma Pi |
| 1988 | Remsen Award, Maryland Section, American Chemical Society |
| 1988 | Ph.D. (honorary), Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel |
| 1990 | ScD, University of Miami |
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Complete transcript of interview
The published version of the transcript may diverge from the interview audio due to edits to the transcript made by staff of the Center for Oral History, often at the request of the interviewee, during the transcript review process.