How to Be Right and Wrong

Synopsis: Nobel Laureate Professor Sir John Cornforth overcomes his deafness to present an elegant account of how he and his wife, Rita, disentangled a historically important puzzle in steroid synthesis. Meticulous detective work uncovered the fact that an erroneous step had previously been made in the application of a correct rule in a previous study. The programme contains early examples of modern synthetic chemistry techniques, such as cascade reactions. [59 minutes]
Series: Reflections on Science, Series
Language: English
Country: Great Britain
Medium: Video
Year of production: 1997
Subjects: Chemistry
Keywords: biochemistry; steroid synthesis

Writer

John Cornforth

Cast

John Cornforth

Name: Vega Science Trust
Email: vega@vega.org.uk
Web: http://www.vega.org.uk External site opens in new window
Phone: 01273 678 726
Address: Sussex Innovation Centre
Science Park Square
Brighton
BN1 9SB
Notes: Well-established maker and distributor of more than 200 programmes on science, technology, engineering and mathematics, many of which have been broadcast. Vega’s videos aim to give a fundamental understanding of principles of nature and the physical world. Outstanding scientists/communicators are directly involved with each video so that they can guide content of the programmes. Science is presented in a natural way as an intellectually challenging discipline and the videos fill the gap in TV coverage by presenting well-informed analyses on serious science-related ethical, economic, social, health and other issues. Separate series consist of interviews with eminent scientists, science video lectures, issues of current scientific concern, the Royal Institution Discourses, scientific masterclasses, and recent research projects. Programmes available for free viewing via the website and some also for sale on DVD.

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British Universities Film & Video Council