Magazine – Linus Pauling
Introduction
You can listen to a recording of this article at:
http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/magazine-articles/linus-pauling
This support pack contains the following materials:
• the article that you can listen to
• a comprehension activity based on the article
Read the article
Linus Pauling
by Linda Baxter
Who was Linus Pauling and what did he do?
Linus Pauling was the only person who has ever
won two (unshared) Nobel Prizes. If you are
interested in science, you may know that he won
the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1954. Then
again, you might recognise his name because of
his involvement with anti-nuclear movements in
the 1950s and 1960s - and his Nobel Peace Prize
in 1962 for his campaign to stop open air nuclear
testing. And a lot of people who are interested in
health and alternative medicine know him as "the
vitamin C man" because he shocked the world of
science in the 1970s by suggesting that
enormous amounts of vitamin C can keep us
healthy. (see glossary)
The scientist
After finishing his university course in chemical
engineering, Pauling worked in physical
chemistry in the 1920s and 1930s. He was
interested in the way that molecules are
connected in crystals, and used physical
techniques, such as X-rays, to study them. He
also applied the ideas of quantum physics (a
radical new science at the time) to the study of
chemistry. He used these new theories to solve
problems that had never been explained before.
His work at that time led to a lot of the drugs,
plastics and synthetic fibres that we know today.
Because of his interest in the way that molecules
behave, Pauling slowly became more involved in
biological chemistry, rather than physical
chemistry. Through the 1930s and 1940s he
began to work with organic substances,
especially proteins. He made discoveries about
the structure of proteins which were very
important for medicine. For example, they were
able to develop an artificial substitute for blood
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plasma. They also made important discoveries
about some types of genetic disease, such as
sickle cell anaemia. Many people believe that he
was near to discovering the structure of DNA at
that time. (see glossary)
The campaigner for peace
Pauling worked with the US government during
World War 2 and helped to develop conventional
weapons and explosives. But in 1945, when the
atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan,
everything changed for him. He began to study
the effects of radiation on the human body - the
structure of the molecules and the way that they
could be passed from generation to generation.
He became convinced that nuclear explosions
had a terrible effect on living molecules and that
using nuclear weapons, or even open air nuclear
tests, would do terrible things to people and the
environment for years and years to come.
Pauling believed that the US government was
hiding the truth from the people, and that it was
his moral duty to tell people about what he had
discovered. He began to speak publicly in favour
of peace, disarmament and the end of nuclear
testing. This was not popular in the USA in the
1940s and 1950s. He was accused of being anti-
American and a communist and he lost friends,
support and his job as a university professor. The
US State Department took away his passport.
They only gave it back in 1954 when he won the
Nobel Prize for Chemistry and had to travel to
Sweden to receive the prize. But Pauling
continued his campaign against the nuclear
bomb. In 1957 he organised a petition calling for
an end to open air nuclear testing. Over 11,000
scientists signed it. As a result of this, he was
given the Nobel Peace Prize in 1962. A year
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later, in 1963, the first ever Nuclear Test Ban
Treaty was signed. (see glossary)
'The vitamin C man'
Pauling continued to speak against war but also
became interested in using vitamins and minerals
to fight disease. In 1970 he published a book
called Vitamin C and the Common Cold, saying
that Vitamin C can fight colds. He shocked
everyone in the world of medicine and science by
recommending enormous amounts of the vitamin
- over 10 grams a day. (Pauling himself took 18
grams of Vitamin C every day - that is 300 times
the recommended amount!). Many people today
take vitamins and mineral pills but, at that time,
his ideas were shocking. Even today scientists do
not agree about the benefits of Vitamin C,
especially the 'mega' amounts that Pauling
recommended. The scientific community didn't
want to know him anymore. He was called 'an
embarrassment' and 'a madman'. The situation
became even worse when he began to speak
about the importance of Vitamin C in fighting
cancer. But Pauling said that his experiences as
a peace campaigner had taught him how to fight,
and he continued to talk about his ideas until his
death in 1994 at the age of 93. He founded the
Linus Pauling Institute of Science and Medicine,
which carries on his work today. (see glossary)
Glossary
Ban (n): an order forbidding something, esp.
officially.
Campaign (n): a planned group of esp. political,
business or military activities which are intended
to achieve a particular aim.
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Magazine – Linus Pauling
Cancer: (a serious medical condition often
resulting in death, caused by) a diseased and
uncontrolled growth in the body.
Cold (n): a common infection esp. in the nose
and throat which often causes a cough, a slight
fever and sometimes some pain in the muscles.
Disarmament: the act of reducing or giving up
weapons.
Disease (n): (an) illness of people, animals,
plants, etc., caused by infection or a failure of
health rather than by an accident.
DNA: deoxyribonucleic acid the chemical at the
centre of the cells of living things which controls
the structure and purpose of each cell and carries
genetic information during reproduction.
Molecule: the simplest unit of a chemical
substance, usually a group of two or more atoms.
Nuclear weapon: weapon which uses the power
produced when the nucleus of an atom is divided
or joined to another nucleus.
Petition (n): a document signed by a large
number of people demanding or requesting some
action from the government or another authority,
or law a formal letter to a court of law requesting
a particular legal action.
Protein: any of a large group of chemicals which
are necessary to and found in all living things.
Radiation: heat, light, or elementary particles -
the most simple parts of matter produced by an
object.
Structure: the way in which the parts of a system
or object are arranged or organized or the system
arranged in this way.
Vitamin: any of a group of natural substances
which are necessary in small amounts for growth
and good health and which must be obtained
from food or pills as they cannot usually be
produced by the body.
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 Magazine – Linus Pauling

After reading

Exercise 1
Decide which is the best answer to each of the following 6 questions.

1. Why was Linus Pauling an unusual chemist in the 1930s?

a. He studied molecules.
b. He used quantum physics in chemistry.
c. He invented new types of plastic.

2. What did Pauling discover in the 1940s?

a. The structure of DNA.
b. The causes of genetic disease.
c. How proteins are constructed.

3. Why did Pauling think the nuclear bomb was a bad thing?
a. He thought all weapons were wrong.
b. He studied what radiation did to molecules.
c. He thought it was an immoral weapon.

4. Why did the US State Department take away Pauling's passport?

a. They thought his ideas were anti-American.
b. They didn't want him to go to Sweden to receive the Nobel prize for Chemistry.
c. He was organising a petition against nuclear weapons.

5. Why did Pauling win the Nobel Peace Prize?

a. Over eleven thousand scientists voted for him.
b. He campaigned against open air nuclear testing.
c. He organised the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty in 1963.

6. How did Pauling shock the scientific community in the 1970s?

a. He said that what we eat can help to keep us healthy.
b. He said that everyone should take a lot of vitamin C.
c. He said that vitamin C cures cancer.

Answers
Exercise 1: 1. b; 2. c; 3. b; 4. a; 5. b; 6. b

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