"But She's an Avowed Communist!" L'affaire Curie at the American Chemical Society, 1953-1955
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ll. t. Ch. 20 ( 33 "BUT SHE'S AN AVOWED COMMUNIST!" L'AFFAIRE CURIE AT THE AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY, 1953-1955 Mrrt W. tr, Crnll Unvrt Intrdtn On ht hv xptd tht th Arn Chl St (ACS, n rnztn tht ld t b r n fr th dvnnt f htr nd nt n p ltl tt fr t brhp, ld rdl pt n ppltn fr bl lrt n htr. Yt th nt th th Irèn ltCr n . Aftr ntrntn ACS ffl rjtd hr brhp ppltn b f hr pltl rpttn (trnl lnd t th prCnt blf nd tvt f hr hbnd, rdr ltCr, nfrd hr f th dn bt v n rn, nd d nth n f thr tn pbll. Whn nth ltr hr frnd tnd nd pblzd hr rjtn, th b lèbr. h xtnv ntr nd rrpndn rrndn th pd t p bl t ntprr rtn t th d, hndln, nd nfn f th dn. Whn prd t n f th thr ntnt "th hnt" n th Untd Stt n th 40 nd 0, th pbl hrnt f ldn br f th Ar n Atn fr th Advnnt f Sn (AAAS, n n th dffrnt rtn. Whr th AAAS brd f drtr rpndd ttl t th ntnt rd b ltn E. U. Cndn nd Figure. 1 Irene Joliot-Curie (1897-1956). Shown here Krtl Mthr prdnt (, th ldr f th ACS late in life, Joliot-Curie shared the Nobel Prize in rfd t lt Md ltCr vn t br Chemistry with her husband Frederic in 1935. hp. "Affr Cr," t t b lld, l Intensely apolitical in her early life, she became more rvld trtrl tnn thn th ACS btn involved in French women's, socialist, and pro- th prttv ntnt f th br f th rd f Communist movements starting in the late 1930s. rtr nd th nrn fr pltl lbrt n (Reprinted from Nuclear Physics 4[1957], p. 497) th ldr f tn. h rn nd fl rdr f ntf pbltn l rvld d rn f rtn. 4 ll. t. Ch. 20 ( The Facts Ardnl n In Mrh,, rnh ht nd bl rt Irèn lttr pprd ltCr ppld fr brhp n th ACS, n f n th brr, th lrt ntf tn n th rld th 4 , 68,000 br, n rdr, h ld, t rv ln th th Journal of the American Chemical Society rlrl. rfll rftd Sh flld n th ppltn fr nd hd, r xplntn b rd, t rrnt br n d tndn vh Er, h hd fr hr rl hrtr b nn th fr. h fr bn n l dd nt bt hr pltl blf r ffltn, ntn th ACS t prd tht t dd nt t h ftr th vrl nt ndrtn. It dn tt nrll br f th ndrd rdntl l dr n htr f ACS rd f fnt vdn f n ntrt n dvnn th fld. rtr. h Sn th St ld tht t dd nt drnt New York Times nt pplnt n th b f r, lr, rln, hd tr bt r pltl blf, t tff nd tt dd nt n t n brr vtt th r (2. t th St dd rr tht , th Christian Figure 2 Aldn . Er (0 . Aftr thrtn r t th U. br b f hh rl hrtr. Sn th d Science Monitor S. r f Mn, h vd n n tt ld nt nvtt th pt f v n n brr r ppltn, th t b vhd fr b th n 6 t th Arn Chl 20, Time maga- St, hr h rvd n r tr f t rrnt ACS br, hh ltCr zn n t f dntrtv pt, nldn hd dn. bt t n t tht f xtv rtr fr t, dpt hr hh tndn ht (nd "pl" p 4 t 6. (Wth th prn h ltr rtl rlvd t lrn tht th vl f brr 22, nd f th Arn Chl St hr hl r hd nvr bn n dbt, th C Science r tt n Adn f th ACS rjtd hr ppl prntd bth lttr n t Mrh 2 (. tn n l 24 ,n lttr nd b rn dhl Yt th ntrvr nt brht t th ttn f th tnl r f Stndrd, th hrn f tn f ACS br ntl th Mrh 22, 4 f th tt (. In Sptbr Md ltCr t l Chemical & Engineering News (Chem. Eng. rt Aldn Er, th xtv rtr f th ACS, News), hn dtr Wltr . Mrph pblhd bth t th rn h. (r frnd ltr tld n ttnt b th xtv tt f th ACS ln tht h hd d tht th ndrd hr rd f rtr tht pprtd th dn r t b ph rthr thn htr (4. Sh hd tt tn nd thr lttrtthdtr n th bn ltd t th Arn hl St n bjt (8. Ovr th nxt t nth (tht , Aprl nd vbr 0 (. Er dd nt rpnd, thh h M, 4 th prvd ndrbl rpn ld nd hld hv nfrd hr tht thr n bth jrnl, th 26 r lttr t th dtr tndrd prdr fr ppl f dn dn (tlv n pprt f th tn nd frtn n pp (6: h ld ppl t th ACS Council's Ctt tn. nll n th M f th Chem. Eng. n Mbrhp Stndrd, hh t brhp pl News Mrph lld hlt t t, n tht frthr nd hrd ppl. Sh nvr prd th rt. nt nll t rlv th n frthr (. Intd hn ftr nth h hd hrd nthn h ndd th frt ph. fr Er, n Otbr, nrnd frnd f hr, M n f th d Inttt n r, h The Reasoning hd hlf n 0 bn rfd tprr v t ttnd tn n th Untd Stt, rt lttr t hr r vrl nvlvd hr. rt th t th dtr f nthr Arn jrnl th pl n—th prn f th hht f r f ntrt n f n nd plt, th Bulletin of nrnl tt nvttn b th U.S. Sn the Atomic Scientists (Bull. At. Sci.). It dtr En t nt n n Arn p. Svrl bnth ntfd Er tht h ld pblh th hndrd flt br r bn bpnd t t rnh lttr ftr nr , nd nvtd h t rpnd. tf th hrn r hhl pblzd nd, h Bull. Hist. Chem. 20 (1997) 35 been docu- ACS ld d bt th, hh d th tff nr mented re- tht th r bn tn dvnt f. h Aldn cently, admin- Er hd ntll rtrtd tht h dd nt hv t b istrators at member f th St t t th jrnl h ld most universi- jt subscribe t th jrnl, dd n ndvdl ties fired their nd lbrtr (4, nd p th hhr fee. controversial h thh technically ltCr lfd– cases as soon h hd flld n th fr fll nd h hd btnd th as possible nr ntr– hr tn nd vr pbl rather than ltrr tv l rrttd th tff nd th Ct rally to any t dd nt dr dt hr. Yt h ld th xpln defense of rjtn hr? Er hf jtftn fr rjtn academic free- hr tht n n th Adn Ctt hd dom (0. d tht h n "vd nd tv Cnt." Evn lr t dt hr ht nt nl th St dvr h—t pblt, bt t ld l vlt th St fdrl hdrtr hrtr, ttr f rtr nrn t th rd f Di- n f t— rtr thn t th Cnl. h hrtr p b Wltr Cnr nd dptn b th ACS n ttd Mrph hd Figure 3 Wltr J. Mrph (8 th St t dvnn htr, prvn Ar . rnd ht, h frd ACS rd fr r f hl n ndtr, nd prtn th th fdrl vrn Srv pn bfr bn n fth nt hn ndd. It thrb l nd th St tff br frt hl dtr n 0. tx xptn (nt nl fr fdrl tx, hh hd brt rtn rvd dtr f Chl nd pprntl bn n Aprl r Ennrn fr 4 ntl h pbl ndr M, f dth. (Wth th prn f th t prv tr h hd r Arn Chl St Yr tt fd t ttf hrtr, bt l bfr Sntr nnr tt (. h Er fr trt f nd th ACS dn tt ptd tht th Clb rl prnt Md ltCr n th tt n nd f tl tt . t hn t b d, ll . h th trnd hr dn tl, dd nt pblz thr d prtnt, n, nd dd nt rpnd t hr nr, pbl n n n 40 th hp tht th prbl ld nntd— St pr hh t dd fr hl. hd nd r Anthr ftr tht rnld th ACS xtv dld n rtr tht bt th t th St tt prtnt h n pbltn ntrdn n rt trtr fr fr t hdr th ACS vrl jrnl. rrl vr ACS tr thr. Un br hd rvd ChemicalAbstracts ll th Chem. dr th hrtr Eng. News nd th Journal of the American Chemical th ACS b Society (J. Am. Chem. Soc.). Now J. Am. Chem. Soc. rprtn Figure 4 Chrl A. h (00 was to have a new rate structure: nnbr nd n h prprt 82. Aftr n t Mnnt n tttn ("brbr" r t b hrd ndr nd nd 6 h hld vrt f xtv pt nldn t prdn. In bl r thn ndvdl br f th ACS (2. ntrlld b 48 h prdnt f th ACS nd Er nd h tff hd ntd tht th r ttn th rd f br f th brd f drtr n nrn nbr f ppltn fr ndvdl rtr nd t 0, hr h t hrn ht h pn r nx t vd th rrd t n hn ltCr ppld fr n rprt brptn rt (.