Lawrence Joseph Henderson

Lawrence Joseph Henderson ( born June 3, 1878 in Lynn, Massachusetts, USA, † February 10, 1942 in Cambridge ) was an American chemist and biologist.

Life

Henderson made ​​in 1898 graduated from Harvard College. After the end of medical school in 1902 he went for two years to Strasbourg. From 1904 to 1942 he was employed at Harvard University, among other things, a professor of biological chemistry (1919 - 1934) and Professor of Chemistry (1934 - 1942). In 1924 he founded, together with George Sarton the History of Science Society ( HSS). In 1927 he founded the Laboratory for Fatigue physiological and sociological research on fatigue / exhaustion.

His work

His research in the field of the body's buffer systems and the acid - base regulation ( acid -base balance ) led to the Henderson -Hasselbalch equation. In his classic work "The Fitness of the Environment " (1913 ) he studied the suitability of the environment for life. Subsequently, he developed a teleological and holistic view of the natural order ( The Order of Nature, 1917). In his book " Blood" (1928 ) he showed by means of mathematical and graphical representations ( nomograms ) that the blood is a physico- chemical system and represents a customized internal environment of the body. Finally, he turned Pareto's concept of " social system " in a modified form in sociology at.

In his honor, gives the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology at Harvard University each year, the Lawrence J. Henderson Prize.

Works

• The Fitness of the Environment, New York 1913
• Blood: A Study in General Physiology, New Haven, London 1928