Edward Rubenstein
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Member of Major Materials Facilities Committee, The Governing Board of the National Research Council (1984)
Master of the American College of Physicians (1986)
Kaiser Award for Innovative and Outstanding Contributions to Medical Education (1989)
Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1992)
Albion Walter Hewlett Award Recipient (1993)
British Medical Association Award for Editor of Best Book Published Worldwide (Molecular Medicine) (1995)
American College of Physicians Laureate (2002)
Edward Rubenstein | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | December 5, 1924 Cincinnati, Ohio, United States |
| Died | March 11, 2019 (aged 94) |
| Alma mater | University of Cincinnati |
| Awards | Member of the Institute of Medicine (1981) Member of Major Materials Facilities Committee, The Governing Board of the National Research Council (1984) Master of the American College of Physicians (1986) Kaiser Award for Innovative and Outstanding Contributions to Medical Education (1989) Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1992) Albion Walter Hewlett Award Recipient (1993) British Medical Association Award for Editor of Best Book Published Worldwide (Molecular Medicine) (1995) American College of Physicians Laureate (2002) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Molecular biology, physics, medicine, chemistry |
| Institutions | Stanford University National Research Council (United States) |
Edward Rubenstein (December 5, 1924 – March 11, 2019)[1] was an American doctor of internal medicine, with major contributions in the fields of medical education, research (physics, biophysics and biochemistry), and the arts.
Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Project
In the early 1970s Stanford University marked a landmark period in particle physics research with the creation of the colliding beam storage ring, called the Stanford Positron Electron Accelerating Ring (SPEAR) in 1972. Among the famous discoveries were the J/psi and tau particles. A byproduct of the ring's operation was an intense beam of synchrotron radiation. Rubenstein and his colleagues E. Barrie Hughes and Robert Hofstadter posited that there may be numerous applications of this intensely powerful, tuneable, and linearly polarized radiation to biomedical imaging, including intravenous coronary arteriography. They devised a synchrotron radiation based imaging system which has been used worldwide.[4][5]
Rubenstein proposed that the polarized synchrotron light which is emitted by relativistic electrons orbiting neutron stars (linear in the plane of rotation, with opposite helicity above and below the plane) would selectively photolyze chiral molecules floating on grains in nearby space. This mechanism would produce an enantiomeric excess of either right- or left-handed molecules which can be delivered to Earth by passing comets.[6]
