Schaefer receives Chemical Pioneer Award

An outstanding honor will be presented to Henry "Fritz" Schaefer from the American Institute of Chemists:

Schaefer, Graham Perdue Professor of Chemistry in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, will receive the Chemical Pioneer Award at the AIC's annual meeting in April. The award recognizes researchers whose work has had a major influence on advances in chemistry.

Past recipients include Nobel laureates Linus Pauling and Glenn T. Seaborg, among others. Schaefer is the second UGA researcher to win the distinction. Norman L. Allinger, Distinguished Research Professor Emeritus of chemistry, received the award in 1994.

"His work has had a deep impact on a variety of fields in chemistry," said Steven Wheeler, assistant professor of chemistry at Texas A&M, in a nomination letter. Schaefer "was the first scientist to show that state-of-the-art computational quantum chemistry can provide results that may challenge experimental conclusions," added Wheeler, "including those reported by some of the most distinguished scientists in the world."

When Schaefer entered the field in the 1960s, most chemists distrusted purely theoretical calculations and preferred to study molecules using physical experiments. Schaefer proved that mathematical models based on quantum mechanics could accurately describe particles and their behavior under different conditions. In 1970, he successfully calculated the structure of methylene, a molecule so unstable that it only exists for a few millionths of a second. After researchers confirmed his findings with physical experiments, the field of computational chemistry became more widely accepted. Schaefer, who now directs UGA's Center for Computational Quantum Chemistry, went on to determine the mechanisms of many other molecules and chemical reactions. Today, the use of quantum calculations for chemical research is commonplace.

Major influences on the advancement of fundamental science is a stunning achievement, the ambition for a life's work. Already a highly decorated scientist, Dr. Shaefer brings great distinction to our chemistry department, the Franklin College and to the university. We are appreciative of the honor of his association and humbled by his contributions to a better understanding of the physical world.