RALPH E. OESPER University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio
R n n o ~ m PWMMERER perfectly exemplifies the university professor who has devoted his entire career to teaching chemistry, training chemists, and turning out first-class research. Imbued, as always, with the importance and dignity of his chosen life work, the approaching close of Professor Pummerer's academic l i e led him to write recently: "The manifold collaboration and other contacts with the student body constitute one of the chief joys of the teaching profession. Sharing their troubles, smoothing the way to creative scientific activity or to practical work in industry, seeing their eyes light up a t the first discovery, these are the things which intimately bind teacher and student together into a life-long fellowship, whose cultivation was always close to my heart. With sadness I look ahead to the day when the age limit will put an end to this activity and sever this association with young people, which most effectively keeps the teacher young in spirit." Rudolf Pummerer was born on June 26, 1882, a t Wels in Upper Austria. The family was then in very comfortable circumstances; the father had a profitable business producing illuminating oils by pressing rape and linseed. The boy's interest was early turned to natural history in the large garden attached to the home. In the Gymnasium a t Kremsmiinster he received excellent instruction in mathematics and science; the chemistry course, which included experiments, made a lasting impression of the lad of thirteen. He played the piano quite well, and was good a t sports. In 1896 his father was obliged to sell his factory because of the irresistible competition of electric lighting, and the family's finances suffered greatly. They moved to Munich where the chief emphasis in the Gymnasium was on the Greek, Roman, and German classics, but no chemistry was taught. Concerts, plays, and travel broadened the boy's outlook and increased his language abilities (English, French, Italian). He also became a tennis star, winning over one hundred prizes in Munich, Vienna, Prague, and from 1900 to 1905 he was in a class by himself in Bavaria. In 1900 he enrolled a t the University of Munich; his objective was chemistry. This resolve was definitely. strengthened after he had listened to Baeyer'slecturesfor two weeks. In contrast, Rontgen's lectures in general physics struck no responsive chord. The nature and behavior of matter have always interested him more than nonchemical forces and mechanically motorized apparatus. Besides Baeyer, those responsible for his training were K. A. Hofmann (inorganic, analytical), R . Willstatter (special organic), and H. Wieland (organic) who was then giving his first lectures on
terpenes. The doctorate thesis, dealing with pyrone, was prepared under Willstatter's guidance; the degree was conferred s u m m cum lade in 1905. Despite his very limited financial resources Dr. Pummerer wished to devote himself to research. Even though he had no assistantship he began to work by himself (Willstatter had just received a call to Zurich). One day, Baeyer called him in and told him that a position was open a t the Badische Anilin und Soda Fabrik a t Ludwigshafen. "What do you wish to do?" "I want to do research." "What will YOU live on?" "I'll try to make some money on the side, perhaps by writing abstracts for the Zentralblatt." "You cannot live on that. I advise you to go to Ludwigshafen. If it does not suit you there I will always welcome you back here." Dr. Pummerer was in industry for two and one-half years and worked in the indigo laboratory under Knietsch, Seidel, and Holt. Friedlaender, in Vienna, had discovered thioindigo and had assigned it to Kalle and Company for development. The B.A.S.F. also wished to enter this field. Pummerer discovered thionaphthaquinone, its oxime, and later its a-anil, all of which served in the production of sulfur-bearing indigoids. Twelve patent applications resulted. Although his prospects were bright, he resigned and returned to Munich. He supported himself by industrial research and carried on his main scientific work in his free time. By 1911 he had accumulated enough results to habilitate as Privatdozent, with a dissertation on "Studies in the indigo group," which, however, did not include his Ludwigshafen investigations. In 1914 he received the appointment previously held by Wieland in chemical technology. When the war started he was put in the infantry, but from 1915on he was in the chemical service. In the powder factory a t Ingolstadt he learned much of value for his courses in technical chemistry. In 1917-18 he worked in Haber's laboratory a t Berlin-Dahlem, where he studied the use of synthetic rubber in order to improve gas masks. In 1919 he returned to Munich where the university laboratory was now under the headship of his revered teacher, Willstatter. The latter offered him a position, its chief duty being to assemble an elaborate exhibition collection of chemical technological specimens, etc. This provided a modest financial support for his growing family and enabled h i to continue his researches. In 1921 he was appointed head of the organic division of the Munich laboratory and his long-desired ambition was thus fulfilled. However, the prospect of entirely independent action induced him in 1923 to accept a call to the University of Greifswald as head of the chemistry
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department. Two years later (1925) he again trans- ity of these contributions were made possible solely ferred, this time to the University of Erlangen, where he through the able collaboration of his students and succeeded Otto Fischer as ordinarius, a post which he assistants. Physical weaknesses since 1918 have prestill occupies with his characteristic competency. vented him from personal preparative labors, and he Professor Pummerer's researches have been almost has developed very intensively the Munich tradition entirely in the organic field. They have dealt with a of making test-tube trials a t the desk of his collahoravariety of main topics, and their results have been tors. By this means he has kept in close touch with the important to both chemical theory and industrial real progress of the research. His lectures have always practice. He has always been primarily interested in carried a strong reflection of his technical experiences, stmctural and valence problems and the dissection of because he feels that both future teachers and industrial reaction mechanisms, and he has become well known for chemists should have a clear picture of the practical his ability to get to the heart of intricate reactions, such side of chemistry. as the Sandrneyer indigo process, the formation of Professor Pummerer has been editor of the welll e w l i i c acid from glucose, the dehydrogenation of known Ahrens' "Sammlung Chemischer und Chemischphenols. More than one hundred important papers Technischer Vortrige" since 1934 and of the Zeitsehrift have come from his work, but he insists that the major- fiir Angeuandte Chemie since 1947.
