UnitedStatesHistoryResearchPaper

WhowasthemostinfluentialAmericaninhistoryoftheUnitedStates?

KarolinaPeza
U.S.HistoryPeriod:5th
Mr.Muoz
ThispaperisbeingsubmittedonMay15,2016.

ThereweremanypeoplewhohaveinfluentialthroughouttheAmericanHistory,butwho
wasthemostaffluent?Peoplefromallaroundtheworldarerememberedfordifferent
accomplishments,somepeoplelikeJonasSalkarerememberedforever.JonasSalkwasbornon
October28,1914,inNewYork.Salkwasaresearcher,virologist,andwriterofbookswith
researchSalkconducted.SalkseducationbeganintheUniversityofMichiganSchoolofPublic
Health,whereSalktookpartinagrouptodevelopavaccinethatfightsagainsttheflu.By1947,
SalkwastheheadoftheVirusResearchLabintheUniversityofPittsburgh,whereSalk
conductedresearchontheinfectiousvirus,polio.Polioisavirusthatistransmittedthrough
contaminatedfoodandwaterthathasbeenincontactwithapersonwhohasbeeninfected.
ThankstoSalkavaccinehasbeenmadeandreleasedtousefortheU.S.andpreventedthe
diseasefromspreading,savinglives.Later,SalkhasestablishedtheSalkInstituteforthe
BiologicalStudies,whereSalkfundedtheprogramforresearchincuresandpreventionstoother
diseasesandviruses.Withgreatsuccesstochangethelivesofpeoplefightingpolioprevention,
JonasSalkisafigureofaneminentlyAmericanintheU.S.historybecauseofthe
accomplishmentsinresearchforfightingviruses,beingpersistentthroughobstaclesinhis
researchingcareer,andprovidingopportunitiesforresearcherstoexpandstudiesforthefuture.

WorldWarIhasjustbegunandaterriblediseasehasstruckmillionsofpeoplecalled
polio.LikeeveryotherparentsintheU.S.,DanielandDorawereworriedaboutpolioattacking
theirchildren.JonasEdwardSalkwasborninNewYorkCityonOctober28,1914.Salkwasthe
oldestfromthefamilyofthree,Salkaandhistwobrothers,HermanandLee.Salkcamefroma
RussianJewishfamilythatwantedtosupporttheirchildreninthewaytheirparentswerentable

to.SalksparentswerefirstgenerationAmericansthatworkedminorityjobs.Jonasmotherwas
thebiggestsupporterthroughlifeforSalk.Salkstatesthathisparentsweremorethan
supportive,mymotherparticularly...Sheimmediately,asayounggirl,begantoworktohelp
supportthefamily.Andshewasveryambitious,inasense,forherchildren...Shewantedtobe
surethatweallweregoingtoadvanceintheworld.THereforewewereencouragedinour
studies,andoverlyprotectedinmanyways(Tocci2122).JonasSalkcompletedelementary
educationwithexcellentgrades,andmovedontoahighschooleducationatTownsendHarris
HighSchoolin1926.AsastudentSalkwasntexposedtomanyscienceclasses,onlyphysics
thatSalktookduetotheinfluenceoffriends.Salksdirectionofeducationwassomethingthat
Salkdidntexpecttogoinginto,inainterviewSalkstated
Irecallhavingtheambitiontostudy
law,tobeelectedtoCongress,andtotrytomakejustlaws,butIdidn'tpursuethestudyoflaw,
foracuriousreason.Mymotherdidn'tthinkI'dmakeaverygoodlawyer.AndIbelievethather
reasonswerethatIcouldn'treallywinanargumentwithher(AcademyofAchievement
Interview).Asthefirstmemberofthesalkfamilytoattendcollege,Salkearnedamedicaldegree
fromtheNewYorkUniversitySchoolofMedicinein1939,wherelaterSalkwenttoMount
SinaiHospitaltoworkasascientistphysicianandwhengraduatedmarriedDonnaLindsay,a
masterinsocialwork.JonasSalkandDonnaLindsayhadthreeboystogethernamedPeter,
Darrell,andJonathan.Thenin1942,JonasSalkwenttotheUniversityofMichiganona
researchfellowshiptodevelopaninfluenzavaccine.Hesoonadvancedtothepositionof
assistantprofessorofepidemiology.HeAlsoreconnectedwithhisNYUfriendandMentor,
ThomasFrancisJr,headoftheepidemiologydepartmentatMichigansNewSchoolofPublic
Health,whotaughthimthemethodologyofvaccinedevelopment(AboutJonasSalk).Later,

SalkbecameadirectorofVirusResearchLaboratoryattheUniversityofPittsburghSchoolof
Medicine,whereSalkbeganhisworkonthevaccinetodestroyparalyticpoliomyelitis.By1952,
Salkbegantotestthevaccineonhumans,whichresultedwithsuccessin1955.In19551956
SalkwaspresentedbyPresidentEisenhoweranawardforbeinganationalherointheRose
GardenduringaceremonyandreceivedtheAlbertLaskerAward.Aftercreatingavaccinefor
polio,SalkcontinuedworkbyopeningtheSalkInstituteofBiologicalStudiesinLaJolla,
Californiain1963.In1968,SalkdivorcesDonnaLindsayafteralmost30yearsofmarriage,and
marriedFrancoiseGilot,thetalentedFrenchartistbestknownforlongtimemistressofPicasso
(JonasSalk:ALife).AttheageofseventySalkwassupposetoretireordowriting,butinstead
hebeganworkinganewthreatAIDS,oracquiredimmunedeficiencysyndrome(Naden&
Blue39).SoonlyafterworkingforavaccineforAIDSSalkpassesawayfromheartfailureat
theageofeighty.

TheroadtoJonasSalkssuccessstartedwhenSalkdecidedtostudygermsinsteadof
law.WhenSalkdecidedtogotomedicalschool,Salkbegantoworkwithmicrobiologist
ThomasFrancisJr.,whowassearchingforavaccineforinfluenzaduringWWII.Salkmovedto
theUniversityofAnnArborin1942andspentthenextsixyearsworkingonvariouswasof
inactivatingtheinfluenzavirusandproducingasafeandeffectivevaccine.In1947Salk
acceptedanofferfromtheUniversityofPittsburghMedicalSchool,wherehebecametheonly
fulltimememberofmedicalschoolfaculty(GaleVirtualReferenceLibrary).Throughsomuch
workforeightyearsSalksecuredfundsfortheresearchfromtheNationalFoundationfor
InfantileParalysis,whichisnowMarchofDimes,forthepoliovirus.Poliowastheinfectious

viraldiseasethatattacksthenervecellsandsometimesthecentralnervoussystem,oftencausing
musclewastingandparalysisandevendeath(PBSSalkproducespoliovaccine).Somuchwas
onthelinewhenstudyingandsearchingforanswerstokillingthismonstrousdisease,livesof
childrenandthefutureahead.Peopleweredyingsoquick,parentsweretiredofseeingtheir
childreninwheelchairs,legbraces,ironlungs,andcoffins.Salkvaccinewasthekeytosaving
thousandsoflives,includingpeoplePresidentFranklinD.Rooseveltwhosufferedfrompolio.
AsheadoftheVirusResearchLabatPittsburgh,Salkstudiedeverythingaboutpolio,andother
virusestoseeiftherewasaconnectiontoavaccinelikeforsmallpox.Withtheresearch
speedingup,Salkusedformaldehydetokillthepoliovirus,butitstillkeptthesomeofthe
bacteriainthebodytotriggerresponses,soSalkrefinedthevaccine.Thevaccinewastestedon
childrenwithpolioorthatalreadyhadpolio,whichshowedpositiveresult.Salkstillwantedto
expandhisresultsfromthevaccine,soSalktestedvolunteerswhodidnthavepolio,likehis
wife,children,andSalkhimself,whichtheyproducedantibodies,andnoonegotsick.Withthe
vaccinelaunchedApril1954,thedramaticimpactthevaccinespreadwasincredibly.According
todatafromPBS,In1955therewere28,985casesofpolioin1956,14647in1957,5,894.By
1959,90othercountriesusedSalksvaccine.Thisvaccinesavedsomanylivesthatiteven
expandtoothercountriesotherthantheUnitedStates,whowould'vethoughtthatachildcoming
fromafamilythatworriedaboutthediseaseaffectingtheirchildrenhasbeenkilledbyoneof
theirchildren,JonasSalk.SomuchinspirationcanbetakenfromSalksaccomplishmentin
killingpoliobecauseofhisbackgroundandyearsofstudyingtoleadhimtothefinishlineof
spreadingthehelptohumankind,thisiswhyJonasSalkisthemostinfluentialAmericaninthe
U.S.history.


Toreachsuccesstherehastostrugglesthatapersonhastoover,whichmakeapersonbe
persistenttotheirwork.AtthebeginningofSalkseducationthepathtogettingthroughschool
wasnteasywhendiscriminationwaseverywhere.SalkwasdiscriminatedforbeingaJew,
amongthosereasonsheattendedNewYorkUniversitysmedicalschoolinthe1930sisthatit
wasoneofthefewplacesthatdidnthaveaJewishquotaunlikeHarvard,Yale,Columbiaor
Cornell(JonasSalk:ALife).Fewyearslater,SalkaskedforablessingfrommentorofN.Y.U,
ThomasFranciswhenapplyingforafellowship.WhenThomasFrancisnoticedhowmuch
religionimpactedSalkstalent,Francischosethewordstoendtherecommendationforthe
fellowshipwithDr.SalkisamemberoftheJewishracebuthas,Ibelieve,averygreatcapacity
togetonwithpeople(JonasSalk:ALife).Inadditiontostrugglingthroughschool,Salksrival
AlbertSabincreatedjustashorttimeafterSalksvaccinetheoralvaccineforpolio,whichwas
cheaperandpeopleratherswallowthanbeinjected.Salkscontinuedtoresearchandcreatea
bettervaccineforpoliotoimproveitseffectiveness.AlthoughSalkhadobstacles,Salkcontinued
tospreadthesciencetoimprovehumankind.Salkhadpresentedlectures,forexample
MassachusettsInstituteofTechnologywhereSalktalkedabouttheBiologyintheFuture.Salk
discussedtheanalogiesbetweenthefunctionanddevelopmentoftheimmuneandcentral
nervoussystem.Inaddition,Salkwrotebooksonessaysonthehumanlifeandtheevolutionof
nature.AccordingtotheAcademyofAchievementBiography,Salkpublishedbooksinclude
ManUnfolding(1972),TheSurvivaloftheWisest(1973),WorldPopulationandHuman
Values:ANewReality(1981),andAnatomyofReality(1983).Afterwritingbooksandessays,
SalkslastyearswerespentDr.Salk'slastyearswerespentsearchingforavaccineagainst

AIDS.JonasSalkdiedonJune23,1995statedfromAcademyofAchievementBiography.
EventhoughSalksdidntgetaNobelPeacePrizeorgivenmembershiptotheNational
AcademyofSciences,SalkstillworkedtogethertostaydedicatedtowhatSalkbelievedin.Inan
aninterviewwiththeAcademyofAchievements,JonasSalksaid,Risks,Iliketosay,always
payoff.Youlearnwhattodo,orwhatnottodo.Iliketosay"nothingventured,nothinggained."
IfIhadfailedtotakeadvantageofthatopportunity,IwouldnothaveknownwhatIwouldhave
missed.Thatwasthebeginningofmanysimilaropportunitieswhichhavecomemyway.What
makesSalkswordssoinspiringisthateveryonehastofailatsomepointinlifeinorderto
understandthemeaningofsuccessandwhattodoandnottodo.

Lastly,whatmakesSalksaninfluentialAmericaninthehistoryoftheU.S.isbecauseof
theopportunitiesSalkprovidedforresearchersandfuturegenerationsstudies.Withpolio
decreasingintheUnitedStatesby1961,Salkstillwantedtocontinuehelpingthehumankindby
openingaresearchlaboratory.SalkslaboratorywasfundedbyBasilOConnor,whoworkedon
poliocasesintheU.S.,thearchitectofthelaboratorywasLouisKahn,whodesignedtheshape
ofthebuildingnearthePacificwithabluffoverlookingnearSanDiego.Salkalsofundedthe
instituteaswellbecauseSalkstatesIcouldntpossiblyhavebecomeamemberofthisinstitute
ifIhadntfoundeditmyselfaccordingtoPBS.ThevisionthatSalkhadforthebuildingwas
thatitwasaworkofartinwhichgreatmindscouldflourishaccordingtoJonasSalk:Alife.
ThisbuildingwasnamedtheSalkInstituteforBiologicalStudies,whereMarchofDimesstates
thatscientificvisionofaninterdisciplinaryresearchcenterthatwouldrevealthehidden
mechanismsofdisease.WiththesuccessofdefeatingpolioMarchofDimesbelievedthatSalk

couldboostpublicityanddonationsthatwouldfundvaccinationprograms.IntheinstituteSalk
andotherscientistfocusedontheireffortsonsuchdiseasesasmultiplesclerosisandcancer.
Salkservedasthecentersdirectoruntil1975,andthenbecameitsfoundingdirector.Continuing
toresearch,SalkstudiedAIDSandHIVlaterinhiscareer(JonasSalkScientist,Doctor).With
theroleofbeingadirectorintheSalkinstitute,SalkalsowasadirectoroftheMacArthur
Foundation,whichwasaFellowshipProgram,anewapproachphilanthropy,andheinfluenced
theFoundationssupportofthehealthrelatedissues.In1986heestablishedTheJonasSalk
Foundation,anonprofitorganizationdedicatedtoadvancement,disseminationand
encouragementofpracticalapplicationofknowledgerelevantto(a)theful
fillmentofthehuman
creativepotential,(b)theenhancementofhumanhealthandwellbeing,and(c)thepreventionof
cripplinganddeathattributabletohumanconductorothercauses(LegacyofJonasSalk).Later,
asSalkworkedonvaccinesforAIDSandHIV,andhisfoundationshediedfromheartfailurein
SanDiegoin1995.TodaySalksworkstillexistsinscienceandisrememberedeveryyearon
May6asPresidentReaganhasdeclaredthatitisDr.JonasE.SalkDayintheProclamation
5335.Salkexpandthedoorsofsciencetootherscientistandtostudentswhoareinterestedin
helpingthehumankindwiththeSalkInstituteandFoundations.

However,othersmaybelievethatJonasSalkwasntaeminentlyAmericanintheU.S.
historybecauseofalowamountofopportunitiesforresearcherstoexpandstudiesforthefuture.
OtherAmericanfigureshaveprovidedmuchmorethecountrylikeFranklinD.Roosevelt,who
createdtheNewDeals.FranklinD.RoosevelthashelpedthecountrygetouttheGreat

DepressionandcreatednewjobsforAmericanstomovetheeconomyforward.Someofthe
dealshavefailed,butmanylasttoday.
ThoughRooseveltdidsomuch,Salkhascuredthecountryfromadiseasethatkilled
millions.IfSalkdidntcreatethatvaccineforpoliothenthehalfofthecountrycouldhavebeen
gone.InthewordsofRonaldReagan,Today,polioisnotfamiliardiseasetoyounger
Americans,andmanyhavedifficultyappreciatingthemagnitudeofdisorderthattheSalvaccine
virtuallywipedfromthefaceofearth.WiththisaccomplishmentSalknotonlyhassaved
peoplefromthepast,butpeopletodaytoo,whichmakesthemostinfluentialAmericaninU.S.
Historyforleavingamarkonthecountryforever.

ThroughouttheAmericanhistorymanyfigureshaveimpactedtodayssocietywiththeir
accomplishments.FrompeoplelikeAbrahamLincolntoMartinLutherKingJr.,theworkthey
haveprovidedforpeoplehaschangedeveryoneslife,JonasSalkisoneofthemaswell.Salks
kindnesstothehumankindanddrivetocurepeoplehassavedmanylivesandnowcontinuesto
inspiretomoveforwardinthemedicalfield.Salkspoliopreventionandmotivationtofight
otherdiseasesshowsthatSalkisafigureofaneminentlyAmericanintheU.S.historybecause
ofthesuccessinresearchforfightingviruses,patiencethroughobstaclesinhisresearching
career,andcreatingopportunitiesforresearcherstoexpandstudiesforthefuture.

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