Conant, << KOH nuhnt, >> James Bryant (1893-1978), was an American chemist, educator, and government official. He was a pioneer in the development of organic chemistry theory. As a professor at Harvard University, Conant conducted research that led to an understanding of the structure and function of chlorophyll and hemoglobin molecules.
From 1933 to 1953, Conant served as president of Harvard University, where he introduced various educational and institutional reforms. He promoted a program of common core general education for all students at Harvard. During World War II (1939-1945), he chaired the National Defense Research Committee and worked as a scientific adviser on the project that developed the atomic bomb.
From 1953 to 1957, Conant was United States ambassador to West Germany. He later returned to the United States and conducted a study of the country’s high schools. Conant’s recommendations brought changes in the administration of secondary education. His suggestions also changed the teaching of mathematics, science, and foreign languages.
Conant was born on March 26, 1893, in Dorchester, Massachusetts. His autobiography, My Several Lives: Memoirs of a Social Inventor, was published in 1970. He died on Feb. 11, 1978.
