“To the field of synthetic chemistry belongs an array of responsibilities which are crucial for the future of mankind, not only with regard to the health and needs of our society, but also for the attainment of a deep understanding of matter, chemical change, and life.” – Elias James Corey
Prof. Elias James Corey is an American organic chemist. Born to Lebanese immigrant parents, Corey credits his ability to cope with adversity to his family escaping a “tragically torn country”. Upon moving to the United States, his family also struggled through the Great Depression and World War II. At the age of 16, Corey began studying at MIT, where he earned bachelor’s degree in 1948 and a Ph.D. under Prof. John C. Sheehan in 1951. Soon after, he joined UIUC and became a full professor in 1956 (at the age of 27). Since 1959, he has been a professor at Harvard University studied organic chemistry. Over his career, he developed numerous reagents, such as PCC and TBS, and reaction pathways. Corey also developed the methodology of retrosynthesis, for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (1990). For all his contributions to organic chemistry, he was awarded the National Medal of Science (1988) and ACS’s greatest honor, the Priestley Medal (2004).