Victor Gold FRS FRSC (29 June 1922 – 29 September 1985) was a

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe th ...

who served on the faculty of

King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

. Gold was born in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, the son of lawyer Oscar Gold and his first wife, the former Emmy Kopperl. He was raised primarily by his mother. Gold arrived in England, at

Croydon aerodrome Croydon Airport (former ICAO code: EGCR) was the UK's only international airport during the interwar period. Located in Croydon, South London, England, it opened in 1920, built in a Neoclassical style, and was developed as Britain's main airpo ...

, in the spring of 1938, aged 15. His entry to the UK had been arranged by his uncle Max Gold (father of

Thomas Gold Thomas Gold (May 22, 1920 – June 22, 2004) was an Austrian-born American astrophysicist, a professor of astronomy at Cornell University, a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, and a Fellow of the Royal Society (London). Gold was ...

, FRS). He was sent, with a cousin, to

Loughborough College Loughborough College is a general further education college located in Leicestershire, England which offers a range of courses including further education, higher education, apprenticeships and professional qualifications. List of princip ...

to learn English and work in the engineering workshops (probably with

Herbert Schofield Herbert Schofield , PhD, (8 December 1882 – 18 September 1963) was a leading figure in technical education, a Rotarian and, from 1915 to 1950, a Principal of Loughborough College, which became Loughborough University. Biography Herbert Schofie ...

). By the autumn of 1939, Gold had gained a place at University College (transferred to King’s and Bristol, because of the war) to study chemistry, but the following summer all Austrian and German aliens were interned, mostly in

Douglas, Isle of Man Douglas ( gv, Doolish, ) is the capital and largest town of the Isle of Man, with a population of 26,677 (2021). It is located at the mouth of the River Douglas, and on a sweeping bay of . The River Douglas forms part of the town's harbour ...

. In the camp Gold met Hans Pelzer, one of the founders of

transition state theory In chemistry, transition state theory (TST) explains the reaction rates of elementary chemical reactions. The theory assumes a special type of chemical equilibrium (quasi-equilibrium) between reactants and activated transition state complexes. T ...

, who taught Victor some

quantum mechanics Quantum mechanics is a fundamental theory in physics that provides a description of the physical properties of nature at the scale of atoms and subatomic particles. It is the foundation of all quantum physics including quantum chemistry, ...

. Gold was released from internment in December 1940, and joined UCL, now in

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth () is a university and seaside town as well as a community in Ceredigion, Wales. Located in the historic county of Cardiganshire, means "the mouth of the Ystwyth". Aberystwyth University has been a major educational location in ...

; Bristol was out of bounds for him. After a poor start he gained a first-class honours degree, largely thanks to the encouragement of Sir Christopher Ingold. In 1944, Gold was appointed Demonstrator at King’s, now back in the

Strand Strand may refer to: Topography *The flat area of land bordering a body of water, a: ** Beach ** Shoreline *Strand swamp, a type of swamp habitat in Florida Places Africa *Strand, Western Cape, a seaside town in South Africa * Strand Street, ...

. He remained at King’s for the rest of his life. Milestones along the way were: (1946) Assistant Lecturer
(1947) Lecturer
(1956) Reader in Physical Organic Chemistry
(1964) Professor of Chemistry
(1971) Head of Department
(1975) Fellowship of King’s College
(1978) Dean of the Faculty of Natural ScienceColin Archibald Russell and Gerrylynn K. Roberts (2005
Chemical history: reviews of the recent literature
Royal Society of Chemistry, , Gold's specialty was

physical organic chemistry Physical organic chemistry, a term coined by Louis Hammett in 1940, refers to a discipline of organic chemistry that focuses on the relationship between chemical structures and reactivity, in particular, applying experimental tools of physical ch ...

. His research focused on the

kinetics Kinetics ( grc, κίνησις, , kinesis, ''movement'' or ''to move'') may refer to: Science and medicine * Kinetics (physics), the study of motion and its causes ** Rigid body kinetics, the study of the motion of rigid bodies * Chemical ki ...

of organic

chemical reaction A chemical reaction is a process that leads to the IUPAC nomenclature for organic transformations, chemical transformation of one set of chemical substances to another. Classically, chemical reactions encompass changes that only involve the pos ...

s. He established the ''Advances in Physical Organic Chemistry'' publication series in 1963 and edited it for many years. He initiated the development of the IUPAC Compendium of Chemical Terminology, which is published with a gold-colored cover and is known as the "Gold Book" in recognition of his work as its first author and compiler.From the Editor
Chemistry International, Vol. 28 No. 6, November–December 2006 Gold was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

in 1972. Ten years after his appointment at King’s, Gold married Jean Sandiford, who had read chemistry at King’s. They had two children: Elizabeth Helen in 1957, and Martin in 1959. Victor Gold, whose home was in

South Croydon South Croydon in south London is the area surrounding the valley south of central Croydon and running as far south as the former Red Deer public house on the Brighton Road. It is bounded by Waddon to the West and Selsdon and Sanderstead to the ...

, died on 29 September 1985.

Publication

*''pH Measurements: Their Theory and Practice'', Metheun & Co., London, 1956.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gold, Victor 1922 births 1985 deaths Alumni of King's College London Alumni of University College London Academics of King's College London Fellows of King's College London Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of the Royal Society of Chemistry British chemists People interned in the Isle of Man during World War II Austrian emigrants to the United Kingdom