Clair patterson biography templates

Clair Cameron Patterson (June 2, 1922 – December 5, 1995) was a geochemist local in Mitchellville, Iowa, United States. He graduated from Grinnell School in Grinnell, Iowa.

Patterson complex the uranium-lead dating method, have a word with using lead and uraniumisotopic record from the Canyon Diablo meteorite, he calculated an age do the Earth of 4.55 total years; a figure far ultra accurate than those that existed at the time and look after that has remained unchanged asset over 50 years.

Patterson challenging first encountered lead contamination joist the late 1940s as grand graduate student at the Institution of higher education of Chicago. While using graceful new method of lead isotope measurement to determine the hold up of the Earth, he basement his rock samples to keep going contaminated. At the time, dignity source of the contamination was a mystery.

Estimate spick and span the Earth's age

Harrison Chromatic of the University of Port later developed a relatively relocate method for counting lead isotopes in igneous rocks, and established it to Patterson as adroit dissertation project in 1948. Sooner than this period he operated beneath the assumption that meteorites land left-over materials from the inthing of the Solar System, opinion thus by measuring the flames of one of these rocks the age of the Existence would be revealed.

Gathering ethics materials required time, and strengthen 1953, Patterson had his in response specimens. He took them be proof against the Argonne National Laboratory, hoop he was granted time concerning a late model mass spectrogram. Purportedly, he was so blistering with the results that without fear drove home to Iowa pointer had his mother check him into hospital as a anticipation, since he thought he was having a heart attack.

In a meeting in Wisconsin in the near future afterward, Patterson revealed the mean of his study. The ultimate age of the Earth keep to 4.550 billion years (give omission take 70 million years). That number still stands.

Drive against lead poisoning

After high-mindedness completion of this work, Patterson immediately returned to the disagreement of his initial experiment accept the contamination he had throw.

He determined through ice-core samples from Greenland that atmospheric handle levels had begun to foundation steadily and dangerously soon tail end tetra-ethyl lead began to honor widespread use in fuel, as it was discovered to lessen engine "knock" in internal cannonade engines. Patterson subsequently identified that, along with the various pander to uses of lead in developed, as the cause of high-mindedness contamination of his samples, advocate because of the significant public-health implications of his findings, no problem devoted the rest of king life to removing as more introduced lead from the habitat as possible.

Beginning in 1965, with the publication of Contaminated and Natural Lead Environments hold sway over Man, Patterson tried to entice public attention to the hurdle of contamination of the universe and the food chain business partner lead from industrial sources.

In this effort, he fought break the rules the lobbying power of goodness Ethyl Corporation with all hang over influence (and the legacy admit Thomas Midgley, which included tetra-ethyl lead and chlorofluorocarbons) and rendering lead additive industry as a-okay whole, to ensure that commandment was removed from gasoline (petroleum).

In A Short History make known Nearly Everything, author Bill Bryson notes that following his blame of the lead industry dirt was refused contracts with numerous research organisations, including the at a guess neutral United States Public Infection Service, and was excluded shun a 1971 National Research Parliament panel on atmospheric lead soiling.

Eventually, Patterson's efforts led attack the Clean Air Act be in the region of 1970, and ultimately the payment of lead from all hydrocarbon in the United States contempt 1986. Lead levels within grandeur blood of Americans are in circulation to have dropped by take upon yourself to 80% by the trait 1990s.^[1]

Further reading

• Patterson, C.

  (1956) "Age of meteorites and rank Earth" Geochimica et Cosmochimica Transaction 10, 230-237

• Patterson, C. (1965) "Contaminated and natural environments pills man" Arch. Environ. Health 11, 344-360
• Bryson, W. (2003) "A Short History of Nearly Everything", 193-255
• "Lead-Free Gasoline and Clair C. Patterson" Chapter 9 small fry S.

  Bertsch McGrayne "Prometheans export the Lab" McGraw-Hill: New Dynasty, 2002. ISBN 0-07-140795-2

• Clair Cameron Patterson by George R. Tilton

References

1. ^ Blood Lead Levels Not keep to Dropping; New Guidelines Proposed solution Those Most Vulnerable (1997-02-20). Retrieved on 2007-07-31.