Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Thomas Summers West. 18 November 1927—9 January 2010

2018; Royal Society; Volume: 65; Linguagem: Inglês

10.1098/rsbm.2018.0016

1748-8494

Malcolm S. Cresser, Anthony C. Edwards, Thomas Lawson West,

History and advancements in chemistry

Even before he was a teenager, Thomas West developed a love of science which rapidly evolved into a love of chemistry and especially analytical chemistry. He realized that chemical analysis and the development of more sensitive and selective methods encompassing both classical chemistry and rapid advances in instrumentation would be crucial to the advancement of many other scientific disciplines. He dedicated his life to developing novel and more powerful methods of analysis, but also to improving national and international recognition of the importance of analytical science and how it should be taught in universities. His determination and unique ability to recognize the best way to solve the constraints of existing methodologies resulted in a UK university-wide change in the status and importance of the discipline. This was done via establishment of an extraordinarily prolific research team at Imperial College in London which turned his ideas into reality, especially in atomic spectroscopy. Tom West's impact continued later as director of the world-famous Macaulay Institute in Aberdeen. He was loved and respected by all who worked with him, many of whom are now chemistry or environmental science senior faculty academics around the world. Though our loss is sad, his impact is still very much alive and will be for decades to come.