Robert E. Swain

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Robert E. Swain
Born(1875-01-05)January 5, 1875
Hollister, California
DiedMay 31, 1961(1961-05-31) (aged 86)
Palo Alto, California
NationalityAmerican
Alma materStanford University,
Yale University
Scientific career
InstitutionsStanford University,
SRI International

Robert Eckles Swain (January 5, 1875 – May 31, 1961) was an alumnus of and faculty member at Stanford University, a mayor of Palo Alto, California and a founder of SRI International.[1]

Early life[]

Born on January 5, 1875 in Hollister, California, a town that his father and three associates had founded.[1][2] After two years of high school, Swain entered Stanford University in its fourth class of undergraduates. His professor , head of Stanford's Department of Chemistry, convinced him to study chemistry. Swain graduated with his bachelor's degree in 1899.[1]

Swain's first academic job occurred in 1898, prior to his graduation; he was a teaching assistant. In 1899, he was appointed as an instructor at Stanford, but left on a leave of absence to study biochemistry at Yale University under Lafayette Mendel and Russell Henry Chittenden. Swain received a master's degree in 1901.[1] The following year, he worked with Franz Hofmeister at Strassburg and with Albrecht Kossel at Heidelberg, returning to Stanford as an assistant professor in 1902.[1] After another year of leave, Swain completed a Ph.D. at Yale in 1904.[1]

Career[]

In 1912, Swain attained the rank of full professor. In 1917, he became the head of Stanford's chemistry department, succeeding the professor that convinced him to pursue chemistry; he would hold that position until his retirement in 1940.[1] From 1929 to 1933, Swain was acting president of Stanford University while Ray Lyman Wilbur was United States Secretary of the Interior for Herbert Hoover.[1]

Swain also participated in local politics, serving on the Palo Alto, California city council from 1912 to 1921, including three terms as mayor from 1914 to 1916.[1][3]

Swain was a strong proponent of the establishment of a research institute at Stanford University, which would eventually become SRI International.[4]

Legacy[]

Swain and his first wife, Harriet King (Cuthbertson) Swain had two children: , himself a prominent chemist,[2][5] and Dorothy Muriel Swain, who married Ralph Norman Begien Jr.[1][6] Professor Swain's second wife was Juanita Elena (Hiestrich) Jaffe Swain.

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j "Memorial Resolution: Robert Eckles Swain (1875-1961)" (PDF). Stanford University. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-04-07. Retrieved 2011-12-28.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b "Swains of Progress". Chemical & Engineering News. 19 (20): 1145–1146. 1941-10-25. doi:10.1021/cen-v019n020.p1145 (inactive 31 May 2021).CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of May 2021 (link)
  3. ^ Gillmor, C. Stewart (2004-09-22). Fred Terman at Stanford: building a discipline, a university, and Silicon Valley. Stanford University Press. p. 40. ISBN 9780804749145. Retrieved 2011-12-31.
  4. ^ Nielson, Donald (2006). A Heritage of Innovation: SRI's First Half Century. SRI International. pp. F1–4. ISBN 978-0-9745208-1-0.
  5. ^ "Robert C. Swain, 81, Chemist and Executive". New York Times. 1989-02-14. Retrieved 2011-12-28.
  6. ^ "Zana Begien". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 2011-01-19. Retrieved 2011-12-28.
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