| 1 | Name: | Dr. Kyriacos C. Nicolaou | |
| Institution: | Rice University | ||
| Year Elected: | 2011 | ||
| Class: | 1. Mathematical and Physical Sciences | ||
| Subdivision: | 102. Chemistry and Chemical Biochemistry | ||
| Residency: | Resident | ||
| Living? : | Living | ||
| Birth Date: | 1946 | ||
K.C. Nicolaou was born in 1946 in Cyprus, where he grew up and went to school until the age of 18. In 1964, he emigrated to England where he spent two years learning English and preparing to enter the university. His advanced studies in chemistry were carried out at the University of London (B.Sc., 1969, Bedford College, First Class Honors; Ph.D. 1972, University College). In 1972, he crossed the Atlantic to the United States and completed postdoctoral appointments at Columbia University (1972-1973) and Harvard University (1973-1976) after which he joined the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania, where he rose through the ranks to become the Rhodes-Thompson Professor of Chemistry. In 1989, he accepted joint appointments at the University of California, San Diego, where he was Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, and The Scripps Research Institute, where he was the Chairman of the Department of Chemistry and the Darlene Shiley Chair in Chemistry and the Aline. W. and L. Skaggs Professorship in Chemical Biology. In July 2013 he moved to Rice University where he is Harry C. and Olga K. Wiess Professor of Chemistry in the Department of Chemistry and the BioScience Research Collaborative. One of the world’s leading synthetic organic chemists, Dr. Nicolaou is considered a master of the art of total synthesis. His accomplishments include the synthesis of some of the most complex molecules of nature such as amphotericin B, calicheamicin, Taxol®, brevetoxins A and B, vancomycin, and thiostrepton. In addition to his scientific accomplishments, Dr. Nicolaou is well known for his educational reviews and books. Among his books, the most well-known are the Classics in Total Synthesis series (I, II, III, co-authored with his students Erik Sorensen, Scott Snyder and Jason Chen, respectively) and Molecules That Changed the World (co-authored with his research associate Tamsyn Montagnon). The latter is a delightful and informative coffee table book illustrating the impact of chemistry on society with colorful images and easy to understand language that serves to inspire the youth into the sciences and inform the public about the importance and virtues of science. For his scientific work, Professor Nicolaou has received numerous awards and honors, including the Humboldt Foundation US Senior Scientist Prize (Germany, 1987), the William H. Nichols Medal, New York Section-American Chemical Society (1996), the Linus Pauling Medal, Oregon, Portland, Puget Sound Sections-American Chemical Society (1996), the Decoration of the Order of the Commander of Honor Medal (bestowed by the President of Greece, 1998), the Gustavus John Esselen Award for Chemistry in the Public Interest, Northeaster Section-American Chemical Society (1998), the Aristeio Bodossaki Prize (Greece, 2004), the A. C. Cope Award, American Chemical Society (2005), the August-Wilhelm-von-Hofmann-Denkmünze Award (Germany, 2008), the Chandler Medal, Columbia University (2008), the Science Award, Ministry of Education and Culture, Cyprus (2010), the Benjamin Franklin Medal in Chemistry (2011), and the Wolf Prize in Chemistry (2016). Nicolaou is a Member of the New York Academy of Sciences, Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Member of the National Academy of Sciences (USA), Foreign Member of the Academy of Athens (Greece), Honorary Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences, Member of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, Member of the Royal Society, and holds 12 honorary degrees from universities around the world. He was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2011. | |||