MONDAY, MARCH 22, 1999

Noble laureate

By Ingela Ringbjer

On-Line Forty-Niner

Although he told his audience he's been around for a long time, Paul D. Boyer said he never believed he would actually win a Nobel Prize.

Boyer, a 1997 Nobel Prize winner in chemistry, gave an hour-long lecture Thursday in the University Student Union which was well received by students and faculty.

'Life, luck and longevity" are three reasons why Boyer won the Nobel Prize, he said. "I've just outlived all my competitors."

He explained how early in his life he gained an interest in biochemistry from his father, a doctor.

Boyer was selected guest speaker at the 24th annual Nobel Laureate Lecture Series presented by the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics Student Council.

"This is the first time he has been invited by students to give a lecture [at any school]," said Jill Oehl, president of the college's student council.

"I've been fortunate to have lifelong experience in biochemistry," Boyer said. "I'm privileged to be the first one to recognize ATP [adenosine triphosphate] synthase."

ATP is an enzyme that carries the chemical energy needed for all cell functions. Boyer, along with English chemist John Walker and Danish chemist Jens Skou, discovered how ATP is produced.

Boyer received his bachelor's degree in chemistry from Brigham Young University in 1939. He earned a master's in biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin in 1941, and a doctorate in 1943. He has done research at both Stanford University and the University of Minnesota and was a professor of chemistry at UCLA.

"I'm especially pleased that he's here," said Glenn M. Nagel, dean of the college, "because he's a wonderful example of the human side of science."

As Boyer discussed the history and background of the Nobel Prize, he also recognized other Nobel Prize winners throughout the years.

"There has been a remarkable history of Nobel Prize winners," Boyer said. "It calls attention to the public about science, and it's good publicity to the scientific field."

"I liked his lecture," Anjala Kanda, treasurer of the college's student council said. "It was really humorous and easy to understand."

"It was good how he gave a more personalized twist and didn't just talk about high tech science," Cerritos College biology teacher Wayne Johnson said.