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Article: Matthiessen, Augustus
- Article from:
- Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography
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MATTHIESSEN, AUGUSTUS
(
b
. London, England, 2 January 1831;
d
. London, 6 October 1870)
chemistry
.
As a young child Matthiessen suffered a seizure that left him handicapped with a permanent twitching of the right hand. As a result he was considered unfit physically for most careers and was sent to learn farming. During his three-year stay on a farm, he nevertheless developed an interest in chemistry. At this time agricultural chemistry was attracting wide attention as a result of the writings of Liebig. It therefore was natural for Matthiessen to choose the University of Giessen to continue his education in chemistry, and he took his Ph.D. there in 1853.
From 1853 to 1857 Matthiessen ...