Prizes are Good but Discoveries are Better

ALBERT ESCHENMOSER (1925--2023), the brilliant Swiss chemist quietly composed an autobiography describing his six professional decades just "for the sake of its existence."

Already as a PhD student at ETH Zurich, he discerned patterns in the biogenesis of terpenes. His passion for synthesis of very complex molecules culminated in the world famous "competitive collaboration" with R. B. Woodward's group resulting in two total syntheses of Vitamin B12.

Albert Eschenmoser asked questions like "How did life on Earth arise? Why did Nature choose the biomolecules we know?" Clearly his vision went beyond synthesis - he pondered about fundamental issues following his conviction: "Life: perfectly commonplace and an everlasting miracle at the same time. Its emergence about four billion years ago . . . is the most significant chemical property of matter".

This reflects Eschenmoser's unique stature among 20th century scientists.

l-i-c. org/1136

Preface

1 From Primary School to ETH (1932 1951)

1. 1 Undergraduate studies
1. 2 Military service
1. 3 Student life
1. 4 Diploma thesis and diploma
1. 5 Zingiberene structure
1. 6 Farnesene Rule
1. 7 Jakob Schreiber, my first student
1. 8 Hans Schinz, my doctoral thesis supervisor

2 From Postdoc to Privatdozent at ETH (1951 1960)

2. 1 Founding the Eschenmoser group
2. 2 Steroid syntheses
2. 3 Base-induced fragmentation of C, C bonds
2. 4 Biogenetic Isoprene Rule
2. 5 Stereochemistry of acid-catalyzed polyene cyclizations
2. 6 Stereochemical interpretation of the Biogenetic Isoprene Rule in triterpenes
2. 7 First trip to the USA (1954)
2. 8 Edgar Heilbronner and the benzotropylium cation
2. 9 Determination of the relative configuration of secondary alicyclic alcohols
2. 10 Total synthesis of colchicineDesacetylamino-colchicine
2. 11 Laboratory of Organic Chemistry: from Ruzicka to Prelog

3 Professor at ETH Reaction Mechanisms and Syntheses (1960 1992)

3. 1 Courses and lectures at home and abroad
3. 2 Visiting professor at MIT (1961)
3. 3 Visiting professor at University of Wisconsin (1965)
3. 4 Turbulent times at ETH
3. 5 The corrin saga and the synthesis of vitamin B (1960 1972)
3. 6 Post-B psychological and publication issues (1973 1992)
3. 7 Research topics also running I (1960 1972)

4 Professor at ETH Etiologies and Prebiotics (1973 2008)

4. 1 Chemical etiology of the vitamin B structure (1973 1988)
4. 2 Research topics also running II (1973 1988)
4. 3 Prebiotics (1976 2008)
4. 4 Etiology of the structural type of natural nucleic acids (1987 2008)

5 Emeritus

5. 1 University of Frankfurt (1993 1996)
5. 2 The Scripps Research Institute (1996 2009)

6 Other Activities and Honors

6. 1 Consulting
6. 2 Lecture tours and symposia
6. 3 Visiting professorships
6. 4 Membership in academies
6. 5 Awards

Concluding Remarks

• How this autobiography came about: the backstory
• Post La Jolla activities
• Acknowledgements

Appendix

• Biographical notes
• Vita
• Chemistree
• Holographs
• References
• Table of contents
• Links and literature
• Image sources
• Index