Happy Linus Pauling Day! Why you should eat an orange to celebrate the Oregon-born scientist – OregonLive
A birthday cake, decorated with orange slices, for Linus Pauling Day at Oregon State University.Courtesy of Emily HoHappy birthday, Linus Pauling!Every year, the Oregon-born scientist and humanitarian is honored on his birthday at his alma mater, Oregon State University.Pauling, considered the father of molecular biology, is best remembered by the science community for his research on the chemical bonds between atoms that form molecules. But he was also known by the general public for his advocacy against nuclear weapons, as a proponent of Vitamin C, and for teaching people, as the title of one of his books suggested, “How to Live Longer and Feel Better.” Pauling is the only person to have won two unshared Nobel Prizes: for chemistry (in 1954) and peace (in 1962). He wrote 11 books, received 47 honorary degrees, and won more than 500 scientific awards and medals.He died in 1994, at age 93, at his ranch in California.Linus Pauling speaking at the Portland City Club in 1962.OregonianEach year on his birthday, Feb. 28, Oregon State celebrates with its Linus Pauling Day open house and social. Visitors to the university’s Linus Pauling Institute are treated to appetizers, birthday cake, a tour of the labs and a toast to the man himself.“It’s a time to celebrate Pauling, and a time to celebrate science,” said Dr. Emily Ho, director of the Linus Pauling Institute. “He was a brilliant and innovative scientist who wasn’t afraid to think outside the box. But, it wasn’t just the science. He wanted the world to be a better place and to make a difference in people’s lives.”Later in life, Pauling advocated for large doses of Vitamin C as a means to prevent colds and fight cancer. That research has since been found to be flawed — namely, that there is a saturation limit to how much Vitamin C can be absorbed orally.Still, in honor of Pauling, Ho said she makes sure to eat an orange every Feb. 28. “We definitely recommend Vitamin C,” said Ho, adding that the average American does not get enough of the nutrient in their diet. “We don’t recommend levels as high as Dr. Pauling touted in his research.”But, it turns out Pauling wasn’t entirely wrong. Research is continuing on Vitamin C’s cancer-fighting properties — only via IV injections rather than orally.Linus Pauling’s childhood home at 3945 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd.John KillenLinus Pauling was born Feb. 28, 1901, in Portland. His childhood home at 3945 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd. is marked by a red sculpture of a protein alpha helix, in honor of Pauling’s protein structure research. Pauling attended Portland’s Washington High School and completed a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Oregon Agricultural College, now Oregon State. He went on to earn his Ph.D. at the California Institute of Technology where, at just 29, he became a full professor. In 1939, he published the essential chemistry textbook, “The Nature of the Chemical Bond.” It was a groundbreaking work, doing for chemistry what Charles Darwin’s “On the Origin of Species” did for evolutionary biology.“From the principles of quantum mechanics, he was now able to derive everything from the strengths and arrangements of bonds to a complete theory of magnetism in molecules and complex ions,” reads a description of the work by the OSU library. “Even better, using his new system Pauling was also able to predict new electronic structures and properties for atoms.”Linus Pauling, left, with chemist Neil Barlett at Reed College in a 1989 file photo.OregonianOther highlights of Pauling’s career include his discovery in the 1940s that sickle cell anemia was caused by an abnormal protein. It was the first time a disease was understood to have a molecular cause. During World War II, Pauling worked with the U.S. military to develop new explosives, rocket propellants, and a synthetic form of blood plasma for emergency transfusions. He was also part of a wartime presidential commission created to advise on government-funded scientific work and medical research. That commission led to the expansion of research funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the creation of the U.S. National Science Foundation, which funds science and engineering research. (Today, both those agencies have been targeted for federal funding cuts.)Dr. Linus Pauling and wife, Ava Helen Pauling, in a file photo from 1981.OregonianWhen atomic bombs were dropped on Japan, Pauling became an outspoken critic of nuclear weapons. As John Killen wrote for The Oregonian, Pauling was among the scientists who produced the “Baby Tooth Survey” in 1958, which proved that above-ground nuclear testing posed a significant public health risk. Pauling’s study of nuclear effects on health led to an interest in the biochemistry of nutrition. In 1973, he co-founded the Linus Pauling Institute of Science and Medicine near the campus of Stanford University, with the goal of studying the effects of nutrition and supplements on individual biochemistry. After his death, in 1996, the institute and Pauling’s artifacts were transferred to Oregon State. The OSU facility became the Linus Pauling Institute, with the mission to “investigate the function and role of micronutrients, phytochemicals, and other constituents of food in maintaining human health and preventing and treating disease.”The replica of Linus Pauling’s office is on display at OSU’s Valley Library, including the original chalk board moved in 1994 from The Linus Pauling Institute in Palo Alto. The board is exactly as it was at the time of Pauling’s death and is not a replica.LC- The OregonianOregon State’s Valley Library contains a re-creation of Pauling’s classroom, including his molecular models, his desk and a chalkboard still filled with his notations. Copies of his Nobel prizes are on display at the university. (The real ones are kept in a vault.)Today, the Linus Pauling Institute continues his legacy. That work includes studying disease prevention, the effects of vitamins, minerals and amino acids on the body, and lifestyle factors that impact health.Dr. Linus Pauling signs autographs in a 1991 file photo.OregonianClinical trials currently underway, for example, suggest that regularly eating almonds can aid gut health, and blackberries can help age-related cognition. “It’s not just living longer, it’s helping people live better longer,” Ho said. “I think (Pauling) would also be thrilled to see that the LPI is helping inspire and train the next generation of health leaders and researchers, i.e the next Dr. Paulings.”— Samantha Swindler covers features for The Oregonian/OregonLive and Here is Oregon. Reach her at sswindler@oregonian.com.Our journalism needs your support. Subscribe today to OregonLive.com.If you purchase a product or register for an account through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. 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