John H. Wotiz

John H. Wotiz (12 April 1919 in Ostrava – 21 August 2000 in Morehead, Kentucky) was a Czech-American chemist in the areas of organic chemistry and chemical history.

Career

Wotiz began studying of chemical engineering at the Czech Technical University in Prague, but chose to flee to the USA with his brother before the German occupation of Czechoslovakia. In 1941 he received a Bachelor's degree in chemistry from Furman University and in 1943 a Master's degree from the University of Richmond. At the end of World War II he served in the United States Army as Lieutenant of chemical weaponry. In 1944 he became an US citizen. In 1948 he earned a PhD in chemistry under Melvin S. Newman at Ohio State University. He was then an instructor and from 1954 an associate professor at the University of Pittsburgh and went to industry at the Diamond Alkali Company in Painesville in 1957. There he was involved in authoring 44 patents. In 1962 he became a professor at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, and in 1967 at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. In 1980 he was Chairman of the History Division of the American Chemical Society. Starting in 1971 he organized trips to Europe regarding the history of chemistry. As a chemical historian, he was particularly concerned with August Kekulé. He was involved in establishing the Chemical Heritage Foundation. He retired in 1989. He was particularly committed to international exchange with Eastern Europe and was involved in comparative studies of chemical education in the Soviet Union, Eastern Europe and Asia. He died in a car accident with his wife.

Awards

In 1982 he earned the Dexter Award. In 1998 he was awarded an honorary doctorate the Technical University of Ostrava (in his home town) after receiving their gold medal in 1982.

Works

The Kekulé riddle : a challenge for chemists and psychologists. Wotiz, John H. (1st ed.). Clearwater, FL: Cache River Press. 1993. ISBN 0-9627422-2-8. OCLC 27478917.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)

External links

• Chemical Heritage Foundation