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by Randy CassinghamRandy Cassingham's Honorary Unsubscribe Recognizes the Unknown, the Forgotten and the Obscure People who Had an Impact on Our Lives
Mark G. Inghram
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A physicist at the University of Chicago, Inghram pioneered the application of mass spectrometers to determine nuclear constants, which led to the discovery of new isotopes. What does that mean to you? Working with Willard Libby, Inghram was able to calculate the half-life of carbon-14, which Libby used to develop his "carbon dating" technique. Inghram was also able to help prove that meteorites were about 4.5 billion years old, which helped refine the age of the earth to around the same era. Caltech's Gerald Wasserburg says mass spectrometers "were [Inghram's] favorite shovels for excavating new areas. His instruments were the vehicles for which whole new fields of science were created and explored." Inghram died at home in Michigan September 29. He was 83.
From This is True for 28 September 2003
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