Robinson, Sir Robert

Robinson, Sir Robert,

1886–1975, British chemist, D.Sc. Univ. of Manchester, 1910. Robinson taught at the universities of Sydney (1912–15), Liverpool (1915–20), St. Andrews (1921–22), Manchester (1922–28), London (1928–30), and Oxford (1930–55). He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1947 for his investigations on plant products of biological importance, especially the alkaloidsalkaloid,
any of a class of organic compounds composed of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, and usually oxygen that are often derived from plants. Although the name means alkalilike, some alkaloids do not exhibit alkaline properties.
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, a group of nitrogenous substances that includes quinine, cocaine, atropine, morphine, and strychnine. Robinson made significant contributions toward determining the molecular structure of alkaloids, which are known for having striking physiological effects.