Alpha Chi Sigma
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Founded | December 11, 1902 at University of Wisconsin-Madison |
International Headquarters | Indianapolis, IN |
Official Colors | Prussian blue & Chrome yellow |
Coat of Arms | |
Collegiate Chapters | 50 active, 2 pending |
Professional Chapters | 9 Chapters 8 groups |
Alpha Chi Sigma Website |
Alpha Chi Sigma (ΑΧΣ) is a professional fraternity specializing in the field of chemistry. It has both collegiate and professional chapters throughout the United States consisting of both men and women and numbering over 59,300 members. The fraternity aims to bring together students and professionals pursuing a wide variety of chemistry-related careers.
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[edit] History
[edit] Founding
The Alpha Chi Sigma fraternity was organized at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in late 1902 by a group of undergraduates who were fellow students in chemistry at that time. Later documents set the date of founding as December 11, 1902. The original founders were:
- Raymond Tracy Conger
- Harold Everett Eggers
- Joseph Gerard Holty
- Alfred Emil Kundert
- Joseph Howard Mathews
- Edward Gustav Mattke
- Bart Eldred McCormick
- Frank Joseph Petura
- James Chisholm Silverthorn
[edit] Coat Of Arms
The seven symbols that stretch the length of the coat of arms are the "seven metals of the Ancients": gold, silver, iron, mercury, tin, copper, and lead. These symbols correspond to planets, gods, and days of the week [1].
Metal | Gold | Silver | Iron | Mercury | Tin | Copper | Lead |
God/Celestial Body | Sol/Sun | Luna/Moon | Mars | Mercury | Jupiter | Venus | Saturn |
Day of the Week | Sunday | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday |
The rest of the symbols on the coat of arms are revealed only to those that go through the initiation ritual. This ritual secrecy is common practice among fraternities and sororities in the United States.
[edit] Purpose
The Three Objects of Alpha Chi Sigma:
- To bind its members with a tie of true and lasting friendship.
- To strive for the advancement of chemistry both as a science and as a profession.
- To aid its members by every honorable means in the attainment of their ambitions as chemists throughout their mortal lives.
[edit] Membership
Membership to the Alpha Chi Sigma professional chemistry fraternity is open to collegiate and professional men and women with a a strong interest in chemistry. Membership is for life. Those who are interested in becoming a member should contact their local (or nearest) chapter for further information about pledgeship and membership.
[edit] Famous Members
[edit] Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Petrus (Peter) Josephus Wilhelmus Debye, Tau '40 (1936)
"for his contributions to our knowledge of molecular structure through his investigations on dipole moments and on the diffraction of X-rays and electrons in gases."
- Glenn Theodore Seaborg, Beta Gamma '35 (1951)
"for [his] discoveries in the chemistry of the transuranium elements."
- Linus C. Pauling, Sigma '40 (1954)
"for his research into the nature of the chemical bond and its application to the elucidation of the structure of complex substances."
- Vincent du Vigneaud, Zeta '30 (1955)
"for his work on biochemically important sulphur compounds, especially for the first synthesis of a polypeptide hormone."
- Willard F. Libby, Sigma '41 (1960)
"for his method to use carbon-14 for age determination in archaeology, geology, geophysics, and other branches of science."
- Lars Onsager, Chi '50 (1968)
"for the discovery of the reciprocal relations bearing his name, which are fundamental for the thermodynamics of irreversible processes."
- Paul J. Flory, Tau '50 (1974)
"for his fundamental achievements, both theoretical and experimental, in the physical chemistry of the macromolecules."
- William N. Lipscomb, Alpha Gamma '39 (1976)
"for his studies on the structure of boranes illuminating problems of chemical bonding."
- Herbert C. Brown, Beta Nu '60 (1979)
"for [his] development of the use of boron-containing compounds into important reagents in organic synthesis."
- R. Bruce Merrifield, Beta Gamma '44 (1984)
"for his development of methodology for chemical synthesis on a solid matrix."
- Elias J. Corey, Zeta '53 (1990)
"for developing new ways to synthesize complex molecules ordinarily found in nature."
- Rudolph A. Marcus, Zeta '55 (1992)
"for his contributions to the theory of electron transfer reactions in chemical systems."
- Alan G. MacDiarmid, Alpha '51 (2000)
""for the discovery and development of conductive polymers"
[edit] Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- Edward Adelbert Doisy, Zeta '43 (1943)
"for his discovery of the chemical nature of vitamin K."
- E. L. Tatum, Alpha '30 (1958)
"for [his] discovery that genes act by regulating definite chemical events."
- Robert W. Holley, Zeta '40 (1968)
"for [his] interpretation of the genetic code and its functions in protein synthesis."
- George H. Hitchings, Omicron '29 (1988)
"for [his] discoveries of Important Principles for Drug Treatment."
- Paul C. Lauterbur, Gamma '49 (2003)
"for their discoveries concerning magnetic resonance imaging"
[edit] Nobel Prize in Physics
- Raymond Davis, Jr., Alpha Rho '35 (2002)
"for pioneering contributions to astrophysics, in particular for the detection of cosmic neutrinos."
[edit] Nobel Prize in Peace
- Linus C. Pauling, Sigma '40 (1962)
"for warning of the dangers of radioactive fallout in nuclear weapons testing and war."
[edit] Collegiate Chapters
[edit] Active Chapters
[edit] Colony Status
- Gamma Mu Colony of Beta Omega Chapter at Northern Arizona University
[edit] Pre-Colonies
[edit] Inactive Chapters
[edit] Professional Chapters
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