Chien Shih-Liang aka S. L. Chien (; 1908–1983), was a Chinese chemist who served as the President of the Academia Sinica. A graduate of

Tsinghua University Tsinghua University (; abbr. THU) is a national public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education. The university is a member of the C9 League, Double First Class University Plan, Projec ...

and the

University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign 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 University ...

, he also served as President of

National Taiwan University National Taiwan University (NTU; ) is a public research university in Taipei, Taiwan. The university was founded in 1928 during Japanese rule as the seventh of the Imperial Universities. It was named Taihoku Imperial University and served d ...

Biography

Chien was from

Hangzhou Hangzhou ( or , ; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ), also romanized as Hangchow, is the capital and most populous city of Zhejiang, China. It is located in the northwestern part of the province, sitting at the head of Hangzhou Bay, whic ...

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , Chinese postal romanization, also romanized as Chekiang) is an East China, eastern, coastal Provinces of China, province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable citie ...

. After graduating from Tianjin Nankai High School, he matriculated at

Department of Chemistry in 1927. He won the

Boxer Indemnity Scholarship Program The Boxer Indemnity Scholarship Program () was a scholarship program for Chinese students to be educated in the United States, funded by the . In 1908, the U.S. Congress passed a bill to return to China the excess of Boxer Indemnity, amounting to ...

in 1931 and went to the United States together with Wu Ta-You. Chien continued his study in chemistry at the

(UIUC) where he obtained M.Sc. in 1932 and Ph.D. in 1934. Chien returned to China after obtaining PhD and joined the Peking University Department of Chemistry. Chien was a professor and the head of the department. In 1949, Chien went to

Taipei Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...

, and was recruited professor of chemistry and the provost of the

, by its then-president

Fu Sinian Fu Ssu-nien (; 26 March 1896 – 20 December 1950), was a Chinese historian, linguist, and writer. He was one of the leaders of the May Fourth Movement in 1919. He was also one of the creators of the Academia Sinica, and was named director of th ...

. From 1951 till 1970, Chien was the President of the National Taiwan University. In 1964, Chien was elected Academician of the Academia Sinica division of physical and mathematical sciences. From 1970 to 1983, Chien served the President of Academia Sinica. In 1983, Chien received honorary doctoral degree from his alma mater UIUC. From 1971 to 1981, Chien also served the director of the Atomic Energy Council of the Executive Yuan.

Family

Chien's father Chien Hong-ye (錢鴻業) was a Chief Justice in the Supreme Court of the Republic of China, and was assassinated in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...

in 1940. Chien had three sons. The eldest, Robert Chien and youngest,

Fredrick Chien Fredrick F. Chien, or Fred Chien, Chien Foo (; born 21 March 1935), is a retired Taiwanese diplomat and politician who served as the President of the Republic of China Control Yuan from 1999 to 2005. After graduating from Yale University, he ass ...

, became politicians. His second son

Shu Chien Shu Chien (; born June 23, 1931 in Beijing, China), is a Chinese–American physiologist and bioengineer. His work on the fluid dynamics of blood flow has had a major impact on the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases such as athe ...

is a biologist and engineer. A grandson, Carl Chien, is a businessman.

References

* Hudong.com Encyclopedia
Biography of Chien Shih-Liang
* Academia Sinica
The Fifth President -- Chien Shih-Liang

Chien Shih-Liang and Shu Chien, father and son academicians
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chien, Shih-Liang 1908 births 1983 deaths Boxer Indemnity Scholarship recipients Chemists from Zhejiang Educators from Hangzhou Members of Academia Sinica National Taiwan University faculty Peking University faculty Presidents of National Taiwan University Scientists from Hangzhou Taiwanese people from Zhejiang Tianjin Nankai High School alumni Tsinghua University alumni University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign alumni