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CORVALLIS - February, 2001, has been proclaimed Linus Pauling Month in the state of Oregon by Gov. John Kitzhaber, to recognize the 100th anniversary of the birth on Feb. 28, 1901, of this great scientist, humanitarian and Oregonian.

Pauling was an Oregon native and graduate in 1923 of what was then Oregon Agricultural College, later to become Oregon State University. He is the only person to receive two unshared Nobel Prizes, for chemistry in 1954 and peace in 1962.

In his proclamation, Kitzhaber cited Pauling's efforts to bring about world peace, the banning of nuclear weapons testing, and Pauling's scientific genius in establishing the basis of modern chemistry and helping to found the discipline of molecular biology.

The governor also noted that Pauling honored his alma mater, OSU, and the people of Oregon with the gift of his papers, books, medals, research models and memorabilia, a collection of more than 500,000 items compiled from 1916 to 1994.

OSU is celebrating all of the year 2001 as the Linus Pauling Centenary, with a wide range of lectures, exhibits, symposia, books, scientific conferences and other activities.

Some of the events that will take place during February include:

• An exhibit at OMSI in Portland will continue its run, titled "Linus Pauling and the 20th Century: Quest for Humanity";
• A public lecture on "Science and Conscience" will be given at OSU by John Polanyi, Nobel laureate in chemistry, on Feb. 7;
• OSU will hold a reading of the biographical play "The Essential Bond" on Feb. 27;
• An OSU symposium on Pauling's influence on science and society will be held Feb. 28, featuring a keynote address by Ahmed Zewail, a Nobel laureate in chemistry and the Linus Pauling Professor of Chemical Physics at the California Institute of Technology.
• A new book titled "Linus Pauling: Scientist and Peacemaker" will be published by the OSU Press. More information on the book can be obtained at http://pauling.library.orst.edu/paulingbook.htm.

A website with information on centenary events, a Pauling chronology, multimedia presentations of biographical and scientific events in Pauling's life, and links to the catalogue of the Pauling papers at Special Collections and the Linus Pauling Exhibition can be found at http://pauling.library.orst.edu.