Birthday of Jean B Dumas (14th July 1800)

Today marks the birthday of Jean-Baptiste Dumas, a famous French chemist of the 19th century, and a pioneer in the fields of organic analysis and synthesis and the determination of atomic weights. As well as being a devout Catholic, Dumas was also a prolific chemist. Dumas initially studied in Geneva and worked under Pierre Prévost on original works on the problem of physiological chemistry, and even embryology, before moving to Paris where he became Professor of Chemistry, initially at the Lyceum and then at the École polytechnique.

As well as being a celebrated chemist he also made some very important studies in the field of biology - one of his most important was regarding the vital role the kidneys played in the removal of urea from blood.

In 1833, Dumas worked out an absolute method for the estimation of the amount of nitrogen in an organic compound, which still forms the basis of modern methods of analysis. He went on to correct the atomic masses of 30 elements - half the total number known at that time - referring to the hydrogen value as 1.

Dumas may however, be more famously remembered for abandoning his scientific works to instead pursue a career in politics, under Napoleon III. He became a member of the National Legislative Assembly and he also acted as minister of agriculture and commerce for a few months in 1850-1851. He subsequently became a senator, president of the municipal council of Paris, and master of the French mint but his official career came to a sudden end with the fall of the Second Empire.

For more information on the elements, that you could potentially tie in to a study of Jean B. Dumas why not visit the eLibrary and have a look at the Top Science cards produced by the Association for Science Education.