Google Doodle celebrates Casimir Funk’s 140th Birthday
Google Doodle took the opportunity of 23 February to celebrate a pioneer in the discovery and formulation of those vitamins and nutrients that are essential to human health
The biologist was among the first to discover and introduce the concept of “vital amines” a groundbreaking scientific discovery that has helped the health of many people and led to the cures of several life-threatening diseases.
The Funk Estate collaborated with Google Doodle on Friday’s art project for the biologist’s 140th birthday. His grandson, Erik Funk, described him as a “remarkable individual whose life left an indelible mark on the field of science”, and alongside his worldwide acclaim, he cherished and was committed to his family and roots.
Kazimierz (Casimir) Funk was born on 23 February 1884 in Warsaw, Poland. Funk’s grandson described him as a curious child who was always eager to discover the world around him, and growing up in Poland, he showed a thirst for knowledge.
After finishing high school, he travelled to Switzerland to study biology and chemistry
At the young age of 20, he received a PhD in organic chemistry from the University of Bern and began working at different research institutions across Europe.
Erik Funk said that his grandfather faced many obstacles as a Jewish student in Europe, at a time when antisemitism was on the rise, yet he pursued his education due to his passion for the subject and earned his doctorate.
Funk became increasingly interested in how food ingredients could have an effect on certain illnesses like scurvy, cancer, pellagra and rickets, to name a few.
In 1911, Funk started to experiment with a substance called B1 (thiamine) and managed to form it into small, ingestible crystals.
These crystals were able to help with the growth and function of various cells. He named his invention vitamines after the Latin word vita, meaning “life” and amine, which is a chemical compound containing an amino group.
This term would later be shortened to – and as we know it – vitamin.
No comments:
Post a Comment