Parsons Award
Charles Price wins 1973 Parsons Award "We are hiding our heads in the sand if we don't think scientists have responsibility for the uses society makes of science. It's not right that scientists dictate the uses, but they have a responsibility to educate society on the issues arising from the impact of science on society." These words on the role scientists should play in society come from Dr. Charles C. Price, Benjamin Franklin Professor of Chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, who has been selected 1973 recipient of the American Chemical Society's Charles Lathrop Parsons Award. One of ACS's highest honors, the Parsons Award is given only once every two or more years (formerly once every three or more years) to an ACS member and U.S. citizen in recognition of outstanding public service. Established in 1952, the award was last made in 1970, to Dr. W. Albert Noyes, Jr. Earlier recipients include Dr. James B. Conant, Dr. Roger Adams, Dr. George B. Kistiakowsky, Dr. Glenn T. Seaborg, and Dr. Donald F. Hornig. The award consists of $2000 and an appropriate scroll, and will be given to Dr. Price at a dinner in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 7. Dr. Price, 60, is a double winner of ACS awards this year. Recently announced is his receipt of the 1974 ACS Award for Creative Invention—an appropriate honor for one holding a professorship named for Benjamin Franklin. This award recognizes his outstanding studies on the polymerization of propylene oxide, which led to a patent in 1958 (U.S. 2,866,774) for polyether polyurethane rubber (polyurethane foam)—now the basis of a multimillion-dollar industry. The Philadelphia chemist's prolific research has resulted in almost 280 publications and 14 patents, concentrating principally on organic reaction mechanisms and syntheses. The Parsons Award is made for public service rather than for scientific accomplishments, however. Indeed, Dr. Price tells C&EN, the award comes at a time when he has decided to stop research almost entirely "at least for a year or two" in order to "go over completely to political activities." He now has only one graduate student doing research with him (compared to 10 to 15 in past years). He was recently named chairman of the board of the Council for a Livable World, and expects to spend at least one day a week —mostly in Washington, D.C.—lobby14
C&EN Sept. 24, 1973
ing for U.S.-U.S.S.R. disarmament negotiations and against such projects as the B-l bomber, and in supporting election of "good senators." Dr. Price is also currently president of the World Federalist Education Fund, is a past chairman of the Federation of American Scientists, and has served on the board of directors of several institutions. A congenial, articulate man, he receives visitors in an office decorated with models and photos of sailboats. An avid sailor, he has won several sailing prizes. Dr. Price teaches only one course this year, appropriately "Chemistry and Society." "The objective is not to teach how to balance chemical equations," he notes, "but to give a sense why chemistry is so important to society—and what tools chemistry works with to accomplish things for society." The award winner's public service career began with defense-related research during World War II, particularly determination of what threat would be presented if chemical warfare agents were inserted in U.S. water supplies and possible purification methods. He served for many years on the ACS advisory committee to the Chemical Corps. He has also served on numerous advisory panels for the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, National Bureau of Standards, and other agencies. Dr. Price's political activity began in 1950, with an unsuccessful try for the Democratic Senate nomination in Indiana. He was then head of the chemistry department at the University of Notre Dame. "I got concerned about the need for ending the war system of international politics and replacing it with an international system of law
and order—in short, I became a world federalist," he notes. In 1952, he won the Democratic nomination to the House of Representatives from Indiana's third district (around South Bend), but lost by 2000 out of 200,000 votes in the Eisenhower landslide. Dr. Price believes it is highly desirable that more scientists run for Congress, particularly since problems Congress faces are increasingly of a scientific and technological character. However, he points out, a scientist must sacrifice much more than a lawyer: If he had been elected to Congress, it would have been hard to come back to chemistry even after only a term or two of office. "It's hard enough to keep up as it is!" What are the views of the winner of the ACS award for public service on ACS's own public affairs activities? Dr. Price thinks that in general ACS should be "more aggressive" in its public affairs activities. While serving as ACS President in 1965, he set up the Committee on Chemistry and Public Affairs, which he chaired from 1965 to 1968. However, he feels that ACS could and should be "willing to express a vigorous political viewpoint" on many more broad, science- and technologyrelated public welfare issues. As for the increased emphasis in ACS now on professional and economic interests of chemists, Dr. Price generally supports the policy. However, he says, "If it should just become a narrow bargaining agent interested in the selfish interests of chemists per se, it would seriously alter the basic objectives from the charter, and I'd be very unhappy." Noting that some chemists recommend deliberately creating a shortage of chemists and see the American Medical Association as a model of professionalism, he stresses, "That is exactly the kind of model we should resist, acting in the narrow interests of its profession and not the broader interests of society." He feels that ACS is "pretty well on the middle path so far." He also believes that C&EN should be an objective news publication, and not an advocate of particular positions. "There might be a place for an ACS advocate publication," he continues, "but not in C&EN." Dr. Price adds that he is "very pleased and honored" by the Parsons Award. Rather than seeing it as capping his career, he obviously views it as encouragement and stimulation for intensifying his public service efforts.
