Calvin Lee Stevens (November 3, 1923 – November 26, 2014) was an American chemist. He was a professor of Organic Chemistry at

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

, and is known for being the first to synthesize the drug

ketamine Ketamine is a dissociative anesthetic used medically for induction and maintenance of anesthesia. It is also used as a recreational drug. It is one of the safest anesthetics, as, in contrast with opiates, ether, and propofol, it suppresses ...

Early life and education

Stevens was born in Edwardsville, Illinois to Arthur Allen Stevens and Irma E. Ambuehl. He earned a Bachelor of Science at the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the Univer ...

, and in 1947 a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...

in the field of substituted ketene acetals and related orthoesters.

Career

Stevens received Postdoctoral Fellowship at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

. He joined the staff of

in Detroit, Michigan in 1948 and became a full professor of Chemistry there in 1954. He subsequently served as Chairman of the Chemistry Department, Vice President for Research, and Interim Provost to the University. In 1958 he was a member of the Cancer Chemotherapy National Service organization. Stevens received a Guggenheim Fellowship at the

Sorbonne Sorbonne may refer to: * Sorbonne (building), historic building in Paris, which housed the University of Paris and is now shared among multiple universities. *the University of Paris (c. 1150 – 1970) *one of its components or linked institution, ...

in 1955. He served as a Scientific Officer for the U.S. Embassy in London in 1959. In 1962, while a consultant at the

Parke-Davis Parke-Davis is a subsidiary of the pharmaceutical company Pfizer. Although Parke, Davis & Co. is no longer an independent corporation, it was once America's oldest and largest drug maker, and played an important role in medical history. In 1970 ...

Laboratories, he synthesized the drug

, which is commonly used as a general

anesthetic An anesthetic (American English) or anaesthetic (British English; see spelling differences) is a drug used to induce anesthesia ⁠— ⁠in other words, to result in a temporary loss of sensation or awareness. They may be divided into two ...

. Stevens received two Fulbright Fellowships in 1964 and 1971. He was a tenured Professor Associe at the

University of Paris VI Pierre and Marie Curie University (french: link=no, Université Pierre-et-Marie-Curie, UPMC), also known as Paris 6, was a public research university in Paris, France, from 1971 to 2017. The university was located on the Jussieu Campus in the L ...

. In 1982 he was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Science from the

University of Nancy A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, th ...

. Stevens died on November 26, 2014, at the age of 91.

References

*Norman L. Allinger, Don C. de Jongh, Carl R. Johnson, Norman A. Lebel, Michael P. Cava: ''Organische Chemie'', 1. Auflage, Walter de Gruyter, Berlin 1980, .

External links

Google Scholar reportChemistry Tree
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stevens, Calvin Lee 1923 births 2014 deaths People from Edwardsville, Illinois University of Illinois alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni American chemists