January 29

Born in 1696, Eguiara y Eguren studied canon law and theology in Europe. He returned to New Spain and served as rector of the University of Mexico. In 1755, he published the 'Bibliotheca Mexicana', a pioneering catalog of Mexican writers. His work aimed to promote the intellectual achievements of colonial Mexico. Eguiara y Eguren later became Bishop of Guadalajara, influencing church education. He died in 1763, leaving a legacy as a champion of New Spanish scholarship.

Fritz Haber (1868–1934) was a chemist who won the 1918 Nobel Prize for his development of the Haber-Bosch process, which synthesizes ammonia from nitrogen and hydrogen. His discovery revolutionized agricultural fertilizers, enabling a dramatic increase in food production worldwide. Haber also played a controversial role in World War I as a pioneer of chemical warfare, overseeing the deployment of chlorine gas. After the war, he helped scale up ammonia production industrially with Carl Bosch, cementing his impact on both agriculture and industry. Later in life, political developments forced Haber to leave Germany; he died in Switzerland in 1934.

Dukinfield Henry Scott (1854–1934) was a British botanist and pioneer of paleobotany, the study of fossil plants. Educated at Cambridge, he became a leading authority on plant morphology and the evolutionary history of vegetation. As Keeper of the Department of Botany at the British Museum, Scott curated extensive collections of living and fossil specimens. He authored the influential two-volume "Studies in Fossil Botany" and served as President of the British Association’s botany section. His meticulous research laid the groundwork for modern understandings of plant evolution and ancient ecosystems.

Born in England in 1884, William Francis Gray Swann moved to the United States to pursue his research career. He held professorships and directed laboratory programs that focused on early studies of cosmic rays and nuclear phenomena. Swann's experiments and theoretical insights contributed to the emerging field of high-energy physics. He published extensively on particle interactions and championed interdisciplinary collaboration among scientists. Honored by his peers, he influenced generations of physicists through teaching and mentorship. He died on January 29, 1962, leaving a legacy of pioneering work in atomic and cosmic ray research.

Harold Munro Fox was a leading English zoologist whose research focused on marine invertebrates and protozoa. He held academic positions at the University of Cambridge and the University of Ceylon. His pioneering studies on radiolarians and foraminifera provided new insights into marine biodiversity. He published numerous scientific papers and contributed significantly to the development of protozoology. Throughout his career, he mentored young scientists and influenced modern marine biology.

Max Weinreich was a pioneering linguist whose work laid the foundation for modern Yiddish studies. He co-founded the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research in Vilna in 1925, creating a central hub for the preservation of Yiddish culture and scholarship. Weinreich conducted extensive research on Yiddish dialects and sociolinguistics, producing influential publications that shaped the field. After emigrating to the United States, he served as editor-in-chief of YIVO's publications and mentored generations of scholars. His dedication helped ensure the survival and academic recognition of Yiddish language and heritage.

Jack A. W. Bennett (1911–1981) was a New Zealand-born literary scholar specializing in medieval English literature. A leading authority on Chaucer and Middle English texts, he taught at the University of Cambridge. Bennett co-founded the Department of Anglo-Saxon, Norse and Celtic and contributed to the Oxford English Dictionary. His critical editions and interpretations reshaped understanding of medieval narrative and language. He influenced generations of scholars with his meticulous research and insightful lectures. Bennett’s scholarship remains a cornerstone of medieval studies.

Rudolph Peters (1889–1982) was a British biochemist renowned for his work on enzyme mechanisms and metabolic pathways. His pioneering studies on amino acid metabolism advanced understanding of cellular biochemistry. Peters held professorships at leading institutions, including the University of Oxford. During World War II, he contributed to medical research supporting the war effort. He authored influential papers that shaped future research on enzymology. Peters’s contributions remain foundational in biochemistry and medical science.

Roger Stanier (1916–1982) was a Canadian microbiologist celebrated for his contributions to bacterial taxonomy and physiology. Co-author of key reference works, he helped define the concept of prokaryotes and their classification. Stanier’s research on cyanobacteria and nitrogen fixation expanded knowledge of microbial ecology. He served as Dean of Biological Sciences at the University of California, Berkeley. His textbooks educated generations of microbiologists worldwide. Stanier’s work laid the foundations for modern microbiology and environmental studies.

Charles Sykes (1905–1982) was a British physicist and metallurgist known for pioneering X-ray crystallography in materials science. He held research positions at the University of Cambridge and in industrial laboratories. Sykes’s investigations into alloy structures informed the development of stronger, corrosion-resistant materials. He published extensively on the atomic arrangements that determine metal properties. His work bridged theoretical physics and practical engineering applications. Sykes’s contributions remain integral to modern materials science and metallurgy.

Born in 1905, John Macnaghten Whittaker studied mathematics at the University of Cambridge. He became a fellow and lectured on applied analysis, focusing on Fourier series and spectral theory. His textbook on Fourier series established itself as a standard reference in the field. During World War II, he contributed to government research on wave propagation and signal analysis. Whittaker published numerous papers that deepened understanding of harmonic analysis and its applications. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society for his outstanding contributions to mathematics. Whittaker mentored many students who went on to notable academic careers, and his work continues to influence modern analysis.

James Rhyne Killian Jr. was born in 1904 in South Carolina and earned degrees from Duke University and MIT. He joined MIT's faculty, rising to Dean of Engineering before becoming the Institute's youngest president in 1948. Under his leadership, MIT expanded its research programs and campus in the postwar era. In 1957, President Eisenhower appointed Killian as the first Special Assistant for Science and Technology, effectively the nation's first science advisor. Killian played a central role in shaping national science policy during the Cold War and promoted the peaceful use of atomic energy. He also served on several national commissions and authored works on engineering education. Killian returned to MIT as Professor Emeritus and continued to influence science and policy until his death in 1988.