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She advanced the technique of X-ray

crystallography, a method used to determine thethree dimensional structures of biomolecules.

Among her most influential discoveries are the

confirmation of the structure of penicillin that Ernst

Boris Chain had previously surmised, and then the

structure of vitamin B, for which she was awarded

the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

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In 1969, after 35 years of work and five years afterwinning the Nobel Prize, Hodgkin was able to

decipher the structure of insulin. X-ray

crystallography became a widely used tool and was

critical in later determining the structures of many

biological molecules such as DNA where

knowledge of structure is critical to an

understanding of function. She is regarded as one ofthe pioneer scientists in the field of X-ray

crystallography studies of biomolecules

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Dorothy Mary Crowfoot was born on 12 May 1910in Cairo, Egypt, to John Winter Crowfoot (1873

1959), excavator and scholar of classics, and GraceMary Hood (18771957). For the first four years

of her life she lived as an English expatriate in AsiaMinor, returning to England only a few months eachyear. She spent the period of World War I in the UKunder the care of relatives and friends, but separated

from her parents. After the war, her mother decidedto stay home in England and educate her children, aperiod that Hodgkin later described as the happiest

in her life.

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She developed a passion for chemistry from a youngage, and her mother fostered her interest in science

in general. Her excellent early education prepared

her well for university. At age 18 she startedstudying chemistry at Somerville College, Oxford,

then one of the University of Oxford colleges for

women only.

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Insulin was one of her most extraordinary researchprojects. It began in 1934 when she was offered a

small sample of crystalline insulin by Robert

Robinson. The hormone captured her imaginationbecause of the intricate and wide-ranging effect it

has in the body. However, at this stage X-ray

crystallography had not been developed far enough

to cope with the complexity of the insulin molecule.She and others spent many years improving the

technique

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Despite her scientific specialisation and excellence she

was by no means a single-minded and one-sided

scientist. She received many honours but was more

interested in exchange with other scientists. Sheoften employed her intelligence to think about other

people's problems and was concerned about social

inequalities and stopping conflict. As a consequence

she was President of Pugwash from 1976 to 1988.

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Thanks for audition !

PG po KTC Pravets, Bulgaria