Theodor Svedberg
Swedish chemist (1884–1971)
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Early life and education
Svedberg was born in Valbo, Sweden on 30 August 1884. He was the son of Augusta Alstermark and Elias Svedberg. Growing up, Svedberg enjoyed botany and other branches of science. While in grammar school, Svedberg conducted individual laboratorial research and performed scientific demonstrations. For his post-secondary education, Svedberg entered a chemistry program at Uppsala University in the early mid 1900s. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1905, his master's degree in 1907, and in 1908, he earned his Ph.D.
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Career
While at Uppsala, Svedberg started his scientific career in 1905 as an assistant chemist with the university. After becoming a chemistry docent for Uppsala in 1907, he became the university's physical chemistry head in 1912. For his academic tenure, Svedberg remained with Uppsala until 1949. During the early 1920s, he also temporarily taught for the University of Wisconsin. After leaving Uppsala, Svedberg led the Gustaf Werner Institute from 1949 to 1967.
Research
Svedberg's work with colloids supported the theories of Brownian motion put forward by Albert Einstein and the Polish physicist Marian Smoluchowski. During this work, he developed the technique of analytical ultracentrifugation, and demonstrated its utility in distinguishing pure proteins one from another.
Death and personal life
On 25 February 1971, Svedberg died in Kopparberg, Sweden. He was married four times and had a total of twelve children.His widow died in 2019. He was a Lutheran