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  Amusing Remarks about Nobel Prize  
Yuan T. Lee - The Mozart in Chemical Circle

2007-9-19

Four of the five Nobel laureates of Chinese Origin so far were awarded the Prize in Physics, while the only exception, Yuan T. Lee, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1986.
Yuan T. Lee was born in Xinzhu, Taiwan on November 29th, 1936. His father was a painter. Little Lee was very good at playing baseball, tennis, and table tennis at his childhood. 'I was able to shoot the ball to any point of opposite side that you named.' Yuan T. Lee recalled, with exciting expression, 'The deviation would not exceed 1 inch.'
In his junior high school, Lee already scored good marks in his study. One time, his geometry teacher drew out five exercises, but Yuan T. Lee answered the five questions by methods totally different from his teacher. As a result, his teacher marked zero to his examination paper. Lee was not convinced and strongly argued with his teacher, 'teacher, although mine method was different from yours, it remained correct.' His teacher decided to give Lee a chance, and let him explain his train of thoughts to the whole class. On the next day, Yuan T. Lee explained his solutions on blackboard, which was understood and admired by the whole class. Finally, the teacher scored him full marks.
Yuan T. Lee read lots of books during his high school life. 'I almost read one book each day.' After his reading of the book of Biography of Madam Courier, Lee said, 'I was first feeling that a scientist can not only work with meaningful researches, but also enjoy their beautiful lives.' From that day on, Lee decided to devote his life to science, just like Madam Courier.
After graduation from high school, Yuan T. Lee was recommended to the Chemistry Department of Taiwan University. And he went to Xinzhu Tsinghua University for graduate courses. Then he went to UC Berkeley in USA for further study. He went to the Chemistry Department of Harford University to assist D. Herschbach to search on dynamics of chemical elementary processes after received his doctor's degree in Chemistry in 1965. During the period from 1967 to 1968, Yuan T. Lee worked 15 to 16 hours each day to design, assemble and setup a set of reactive scattering unit all by himself. His tutor, D. Herschbach who jointly won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1957, signed that, 'such complex unit, could only be made out by Chinese people.' He appraised Lee to be the Mozart in Chemistry circle, not because he was a precocious genius, but also he was as precise as Mozart.
The subject of Molecular Reaction Dynamics was the research and study on chemical reaction process from the micro aspect of molecular and atomy, and answer to the basic question that how a chemical reaction occurs.
The outstanding achievements of Yuan T. Lee in such field enabled him to be awarded the National Science Award in 1986, and the Nobel Prize in Chemistry latterly. Yuan T. Lee was very concerned about the scientific researches in mainland China and Taiwan. He, for several times, visited Chinese Academy of Sciences to help the Chemical Institute and Dalian Chemical and Physical Institute to setup relative apparatuses and devices.
In 1993, Lee abandoned his USA nationality and back to Taiwan, and took up the post of president of Taipei Central Academy from early 1994. He made great efforts and reformed the research system of the academy, and finally attracted many overseas scientists of Chinese origin back to Taiwan for researches.
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Organizer: Beijing Municipal Association for Science & Technology
Undertaker: Beijing Science & Technology Consulting Center,
Information Center of Beijing Municipal Association for Science & Technology