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Prof. Aharon Katzir
(1913 - 1972)
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Aharon Katchalsky-Katzir
was born in 1913 in
Lodz,
Poland. His family emigrated to Jerusalem
in 1922, where he studied in the Hebrew Gymnasium. In 1932 Katzir-Katchalsky began his studies at Hebrew University and published a book
"Sons of the Sun", about butterflies in Israel. After serving in the Haganah, he completed his Ph. D. in Chemistry Summa Cum
Laude.
In
1948 he was invited by Chaim Weizmann to join the
Weizmann Institute of Science in Rehovot as head of
the Department of Polymer Research, and in 1952 became a professor of
physical chemistry at the Hebrew
University
in Jerusalem.
His areas of interest included the use of polyelectrolytes
as models for macromolecular substances in the living organism, membranes,
and network thermodynamics. Aharon Katzir was a pioneer in the study of the electrochemistry
of biopolymers. He received the Israel Prize in 1961 and was president of the
Israel Academy of Arts and Sciences, 1962-1968. His lectures and
writings were very popular.
Professor
Aharon Katzir was killed
on May 30, 1972, by a Japanese terrorist at Ben-Gurion
Airport.
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