"Try and fall sick .."-the composer, chemist, and surgeon Aleksandr Borodin.
Although Aleksandr Porfir’evič Borodin is considered one of the outstanding Russian composers of the 19th century, he left only a very small volume of musical work. He is particularly renowned for the world-famous “Polovtsian Dances” from the opera “Prince Igor” and for his membership in “The Mighty Handful”. Also noteworthy, aside from the forementioned opera “Prince Igor”, are his three symphonies, two string quartets, and a symphonic poem “In the Steppes of Central Asia”. The reason for his small œuvre is that he considered himself a sunday composer, composing for fun and only in his rare spare time or when he was ill. In fact, he was a professor of chemistry, and chemistry was avowedly his first passion. There were also other fields, besides chemistry, to which he was more committed than composition. Despite this declared priority for chemistry, Aleksandr Borodin is mostly unknown as a chemist to chemists of today, and—much to my regret—even as composer. This surely is not justified, since he is the discoverer of outstanding reactions, although unfortunately at a time when it was uncommon to name reactions after their inventors. This Essay is intended to shed light on all the various facets of Borodin, with a special focus on his chemical work.
Färben in überkritischem Kohlendioxid
Wasser ist das Medium, das bislang vorrangig beim Farben von Textilien eingesetzt wird. Eine Alternative konnte das Farben in uberkritischem Kohlenstoffdioxid werden.
Alexander Borodin, the scientist, the musician, the man.
On March 19, 1887, the back pages ofLancetcontained a one-paragraph obituary notice which read in part: Dr. Alexander Porphyryevich Borodin died suddenly, probably from highly diseased coronary arteries. His published works were tolerably numerous and included a number of important articles on the estimation of nitrogen. By means of Professor Borodin's process, combined with that of Kjeldahl's, the physician has a means whereby this estimation may be made with a very moderate amount of difficulty and trouble.... In spite of his arduous professional and laboratory work, Professor Borodin found time for cultivation of the art and science of music, in which he was quite adept. He is, indeed, said to have rendered valuable service to the cause of Russian music. Borodin wore the two hats of medicine and music throughout his life. He had composed a polka by the age of 9 and, when he was 13, a