In science, Charles Coryell (1912-1971) was an American chemist (Ѻ) noted for his 1940 coining of the terms "endergonic" and "exergonic". [1]
Exergonic | Endergonic
In circa 1890s, Wilhelm Ostwald, according to John Edsall (1974), introduced the concept of "coupled reactions". [2]
In 1940, Coryell, in his Science letter “The Proposed Terms ‘Exergonic’ and Endergonic’ for Thermodynamics”, introduced the terms ‘exergonic’ (energy-yielding) and ‘endergonic’ (energy-requiring), as definitive of reactions that provide free energy, and so can produce work, as opposed to reactions which work must be expended to cause the reactions to go. [1]
Quotes | About
The following are noted about quotes:
“Charles seemed to take it for granted that everyone else shared his remarkable intelligence. He would talk to you as if, of course, you knew all this chemistry he was rattling off. He could not help being brilliant, but he seemed quite unaware that not everyone had this gift; he really seemed to think you were his equal.”
— Anon (c.2010), recollections (Ѻ) of one of his former MIT grad students
References
1. (a) Coryell, Charles D. (1940). “The Proposed Terms ‘Exergonic’ and Endergonic’ for Thermodynamics” (Ѻ), Science, 92:380, Oct.
(b) Purves, William K, Sadava, David, and Orians, Gordon H. (2004). Life: the Science of Biology (section: ATP couples exergonic and endergonic reactions, pgs. 112-13). MacMillian.
2. Edsall, John T. (1974). “Some Notes and Queries on the Development of Bioenergetics. Notes on some ‘Founding Fathers’ of Physical Chemistry: J. Willard Gibbs, Wilhelm Ostwald, Walther Nernst, Gilbert Newton Lewis” (abs), Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, 5(1-2): 103–12, Nov 15.
External links
● Charles D. Coryell – Wikipedia.
