Glenn T. Seaborg was born in Michigan, USA, to Swedish parents. He studied chemistry at the University of California at a time of economic hardship, working his way through college as a labourer and laboratory assistant.Seaborg became interested in nuclear chemistry in the 1930s. The discovery of the neutron in 1932 had led to much interest in isotopes and nuclear transmutations.
Working at the University of California, Berkeley, Seaborg contributed to the discovery of more than a hundred new isotopes. Heavy element isotopes are created by the bombardment of target metals with lighter nuclei. With others, Seaborg created a new isotope, iron-59, used in the research of haemoglobin in blood, and also iodine-131, which is still used in the treatment of thyroid disease.
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