An unusual monument is located outside the Faculty of Biology (University of Latvia) building in Riga. The object shaped as malic acid molecules (the so-called Walden Inversion) is devoted to Latvian-born Nobel Prize nominee scientist Paul Walden.
Paul Walden (1863 – 1957) was a Latvian-born chemist, who later became a German national. His studies with Wilhelm Ostwald (Nobel Prize in Chemistry. 1909) greatly influenced his development as a scientist. Walden is founder of physical organic chemistry.
Walden became prominent thanks to the invention of the stereo-chemical reaction known as Walden Inversion. In 1905, he discovered a relation between maximum molecular conductivity and viscosity of the medium and in 1906, coined the term "solvation". He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1913 and 1914, but World War I changed all that. Walden was chosen as the first president of the University of Latvia, but he declined as lectures there were to be presented exclusively in Latvian. Walden refused to limit science to one particular nationality. He continued his scientific research in Germany, and read lectures up to the age of 93.
Latvian academician Jānis Strādiņš had the idea of setting up a monument with elements of Walden Inversion. This also shows the receptiveness of science both eastward and westward. The monument also features a bas-relief of Walden. Created by sculptor Andris Vārpa and set up in October 2003.
www.liveriga.com
