© Copyright 2003 American Chemical Society
AUGUST 5, 2003 VOLUME 19, NUMBER 16
Dedication Langmuir Special Issue in Memory of David F. O’Brien This issue of Langmuir is dedicated to the memory of Professor David F. O’Brien. David died July 13, 2002, after an extended illness. This special issue contains a collection of research articles contributed by David’s friends and colleagues, many of whom worked collaboratively with David and his students. David O’Brien was born in 1936 in Litchfield, IL. He graduated with a BS degree from Wabash College in 1957 and then obtained his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry in 1961 from the University of Illinois. David spent the first 25 years of his professional career as a research scientist at the Research Laboratories of Eastman Kodak Company in Rochester, NY. During that period he worked in areas related to photographic chemistry. He had an early interest in cyanine dyes, which are important as spectral sensitizers for silver halides, and his interest in cyanines continued throughout his career. In 1981 David published his first paper in the area of surfactant polymerization (D. F. O’Brien et al. The Photopolymerization of Lipid-Diacetylenes in Bimolecular-Layer Membranes. J. Polym. Sci.: Polym. Lett. Ed. 1981, 19, 95). This short but important paper set the stage for the research on polymerization of surfactant assemblies and nanostructures that would become the focus of his research for the next 2 decades. In 1987 David O’Brien moved from Kodak to take a position as Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at the University of Arizona. David developed and maintained a very active research group at Arizona, and his group’s research was mainly focused on the chemistry and biochemistry of self-assembled nanostructures and polymerized surfactant assemblies. During his tenure at Arizona, David worked with a large group of undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral students, and most of his former students have gone on to productive careers in industry and academe. During the 1990s David served the profession in many ways, including serving on the board of the ACS-Petroleum Research Fund and on the Editorial Board of Langmuir.
The following dedication was compiled from statements written by four scientists who knew or worked with David at various stages in his life. Their comments follow in an order that approximately corresponds to the chronological development of David’s professional career. Thomas L. Penner For a period of 25 years at Kodak, David O’Brien interacted with, influenced, and stimulated many of us in the Research Laboratories, where he is fondly remembered as an outstanding scientist and a valued friend. David began his scientific career in photographic research, where he introduced the most modern photophysical techniques of the time. He also initiated work at Kodak on monolayer assemblies, which culminated in the first report on photopolymerization in organized media. This highly innovative work anticipated a major contribution of David to science, the chemistry of vesicles. His pioneering work led to extensive interactions and collaborations with key scientists around the world. His lab at Kodak became a unique attraction for many visiting researchers, who were able to experience research of the highest caliber in an industrial setting. The Kodak colleagues and friends of David remember him as a talented scientist with the highest personal and scientific integrity. We value his leadership and the role he played in steering the company’s research into new directions and for his influence on the careers of many with whom he interacted and collaborated, including younger scientists. His influence on the Laboratories and leadership role in the Rochester community, combined with an extremely warm personality and subtle sense of humor, will always be a cherished memory. Bruce A. Armitage I first met David O’Brien when I was visiting the University of Arizona as a prospective graduate student. The projects he described during my visit with him appealed to me in a way that I did not quite understand at the time. It made it very difficult to turn down other
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programs in order to follow that little voice that was telling me to go to Arizona. One year later, when I was settled into David’s lab, I realized why I was there. In reading a review article by Helmut Ringsdorf, I came across a figure depicting the way in which chemistry unites the biological and materials sciences. I looked around the group and I realized that this philosophy was reflected in every project underway in David’s lab at that time. It is commonplace these days to find chemists who combine polymer/ materials chemistry and biological molecules in their research programs, but 15 years ago this was largely uncharted territory. David was one of a select few who worked at multiple interfaces simultaneously. More broadly, David viewed science not as discrete disciplines but rather as a continuum of techniques, paradigms, and concepts. I keep on my desk the thank-you card David gave me the day before I left his lab to begin my postdoctoral work. (Yes, he gave me a thank-you card when it should have been the other way around.) It has on its cover an Ansel Adams photograph of Canyon de Chelly and an inscription inside that reads, in part, that he hoped the print would help me “recall the openness and clarity” of the Southwest. While he was referring to the landscape and environment of that truly wonderful part of the United States, David could also have been describing his own approach to research: “openness” about embracing other disciplines, and “clarity” in presenting the results of one’s research. David blended creativity and depth in equal parts to produce a legacy that we are privileged to celebrate in this issue. I learned a great deal about lipids, polymers, and photochemistry during my time with David, but the most important thing I learned was to view science holistically. When I look at my lab, the students who work there, and the research we conduct, I cannot help but see a little bit of David in it all. In reading the articles in this memorial issue, I’m sure you will not be surprised to see a little bit of David in them all as well. Dominic V. McGrath David first visited Arizona to give a seminar as a guest of Hank Hall who was consulting at Kodak at the time. David’s beautifully prepared and eloquent talk made a huge impression on his audience, and this eventually led to David being lured to Tucson in 1987 to take a position as Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry. David brought to the Department a new chemical area, the synthesis and polymerization of self-organizing, supramolecular materials, as well as new physical methods to study their properties. His significant contributions to this field persist at Arizona as a result of the outstanding collaborations he established with many faculty in the Department of Chemistry and in other Departments and Colleges at Arizona. These efforts led to many novel insights for biophysical, pharmacological, biochemical, analytical, materials, and medical applications, and their continuation is reflected in some of the papers in this special issue of Langmuir. Beyond his outstanding scientific accomplishments, David will be remembered most at Arizona for being a caring member of our community. He brought a true sense of leadership and perspective to Arizona. He also played an instrumental role in the development of our Department into an outstanding environment in which to do science, and his leadership was most important to the young faculty in the Department. Indeed, David always kept sight of his principal role: an educator who mentored students through shared scholarship. David was interested in his students both as young scientists and as people, and he measured his success in the context of their
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David with Elizabeth J. O. Atkinson on the occasion of her Ph.D.
David with Steven Arzberger, one of his last graduate students. Steve defended last fall, shortly after David’s death. Photograph by Judy Thomson.
accomplishments after they left Arizona, as well as their accomplishments during their tenure in his laboratory. Most revealing is that, on the last day of his life, David traveled to campus to visit with his students one last time. David O’Brien’s critical scientific insights, warm personality, and quiet, but infectious, enthusiasm for his science were, and still are, a major influence on the scientific community here at Arizona. He is remembered by the faculty, staff, and especially the students at Arizona as a superb scientist, mentor, teacher, and friend. We miss him very much. David G. Whitten It has been a great privilege and pleasure to have known David over a long period (∼30 years) spanning his careers at Kodak and Arizona. We first met when I consulted at Kodak, before I moved to Rochester. At this time our research interests were extending to organized media such as micelles and vesicles. Our scientific and personal interactions increased with my move to Rochester. David was able to give me an insider’s view on Rochester and New York politics as well as much insight into the intricacies of vesicles, membranes, and other assemblies. The Rochester Community (Kodak, The University of Rochester, Xerox, etc.) was very sorry to lose David when he and Nancy departed for Tucson; however we were also excited for them and the exciting changes in their lives
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and lifestyles. Jo and I had the good fortune to visit Nancy and David several times in Tucson and to get to know the students, postdoctoral fellows, and colleagues who had the good fortune to work with David. I learned of David’s illness near the end of 2001. Before I had a chance to write or call David, I received a call from him about a review that he “owed” Langmuir. We talked about his illness and his intention to lead a “normal” life as long as possible. Shortly after David’s death, Kirk and I met to discuss the idea of a Special Issue of Langmuir as an appropriate way to honor David’s life and contributions. We recruited Bruce, Dom, and Tom to serve as co-editors of this volume. We thank the many scientists who have contributed to this volume as authors and/or reviewers.
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Bruce A. Armitage Chemistry, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA Dominic V. McGrath Department of Chemistry, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ Thomas L. Penner Imaging Materials R&D, Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester, NY Kirk S. Schanze Department of Chemistry, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL David G. Whitten QTL Biosystems LLC, Santa Fe, NM Department
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