Luyện tập với IELTS Academic Reading Sample 48 - William Henry Perkin giúp các bạn hệ thống kiến thức đã học, làm quen với cấu trúc đề thi, đồng thời rèn luyện kỹ năng giải đề giúp bạn tự tin đạt kết quả cao trong kì thi sắp tới. Mời các bạn cùng tham khảo. | The man who invented synthetic dyes William Henry Perkin was born on March 12 1838 in London England. As a boy Perkin s curiosity prompted early interests in the arts. sciences. photography and engineering. But it was a chance stumbling upon a run-down. yet functional laboratory in his late grandfathers home that solidified the young man s enthusiasm for chemistry. As a student at the City of London School Perkin became immersed in the study of chemistry. His talent and devotion to the subject were perceived by his teacher Thomas Hall who encouraged him to attend a series of lectures given by the eminent scientist Michael Faraday at the Royal Institution. Those speeches tired the young chemist s enthusiasm further and he later went on to attend the Royal College of Chemistry which he succeeded in entering in 1853 at the age of 15. At the time of Perkin s enrollment the Royal College of Chemistry was headed by the noted German chemist August Wilhelm Hofmann. Perkin s scientific gifts soon caught Hofmann s attention and within two years. he became Hofmann s youngest assistant Not long after that Perkin made the scientific breakthrough that would bring him both fame and fortune. At the time quinine was the only viable medical treatment for malaria. The drug ls derived from the bark of the cinchona tree native to South America and by 1856 demand for the drug was surpassing the available supply. Thus when Hofmann made some passing comments about the desirability of a synthetic substitute for quinine. it was unsurprising that his star pupil was moved to take up the challenge. During his vacation in 1856 Perkin spent his time in the laboratory on the top floor of his family s house. He was attempting to manufacture quinine from aniline an inexpensive and readily available coal tar waste product. Despite his best efforts however he did not end up with quinine. Instead he produced a mysterious dark sludge. Luckily Perkins scientific training and nature prompted him to .
