The chemistry of World War I was largely based on the by-products of coal; the chemistry underlying World War II is based to an amazing degree on the by-products of petroleum.
Last week, as if symbolizing this momentous change, which may affect U.S. industry long after World War II is over, the Society of Chemical Industry gave its top award, the Perkin Medal, not to a leader of an established chemical firm like Carbide, Monsanto or Du Pont, but to Dr. Robert Erastus Wilson, head of Pan American Petroleum & Transport Co., a subsidiary...
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