Simonsen Lectureship 2008-2009 Winner

Awarded for his many outstanding contributions to the total synthesis of complex natural products.

Amos Smith III undertook his two week lecture tour in November 2008, visiting a number of locations throughout the UK at which he delivered his Simonsen lecture.

About the winner

Amos B. Smith, III, was born in Lewisburg, PA in 1944, where in 1966, he received Bucknell University's first combined B.S.-M.S. degree in chemistry under the direction of Harold W. Heine.  

After a year in Medical School at the University of Pennsylvania, he entered Rockefeller University completing his Ph.D degree and a year as a Postdoctoral Associate in the Laboratory of William C. Agosta.  

In 1973 he joined the Department of Chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania where he is currently the Rhodes-Thompson Professor of Chemistry, a member of the Monell Chemical Senses Center, the Associate Director of the Penn Center for Molecular Discovery, and an Honorary Member of the Kitasato Institute, Tokyo, Japan.  In addition, Professor Smith serves as the inaugural Editor-in-Chief of Organic Letter.  From 1988-1996 he was Chair of the Department.  

His research interests include organic synthesis, particularly the synthesis of architecturally complex bioactive natural products, bioorganic chemistry (in collaboration with Professor Ralph Hirschmann, University of Pennsylvania), and materials science.  

In recognition of his accomplishments, Professor Smith has received numerous awards, including the ACS Cope Scholar Award (1991), the ACS Ernest Guenther Award in the Chemistry of Natural Products (1993), the ACS Award for Creative Work in Synthetic Organic Chemistry (1997), the Centenary Medal of the Royal Society of Chemistry (2002), the Yamada Prize, Tokyo, Japan (2003), and the Order of the Rising sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon from the Government of Japan.  In 2007 he was elected Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.