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Lester R. Morss

by Susan J. Ainsworth
July 21, 2014 | A version of this story appeared in Volume 92, Issue 29

Lester R. Morss, 74, an inorganic chemist who worked in academia and government, died on June 14 of metastatic ocular melanoma at his home in Columbia, Md.

Born in Boston, Morss earned a B.A. in chemistry and physics magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1961. He served in the Navy for four years before earning a Ph.D. in inorganic and nuclear chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley, in 1969, under B. B. Cunningham.

He conducted postdoctoral research and was a visiting assistant professor at Purdue University until 1971, when he became an assistant professor of chemistry at Rutgers University. Reaching the rank of professor in 1977, Morss conducted research in synthetic inorganic chemistry, thermochemistry, and the structural chemistry of transition metals, rare-earth elements, and the actinides.

Morss also served as a senior scientist and group leader at Argonne National Laboratory. From 2002 until 2010, he was program manager for heavy element chemistry in the Department of Energy’s Office of Basic Energy Sciences in Germantown, Md.

Morss was an adjunct professor of chemistry at the University of Maryland, College Park, and a visiting scholar at George Washington University, teaching chemistry until May of this year. He was coeditor of “The Chemistry of the Actinide and Transactinide Elements.”

He was elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1991 and was an emeritus member of ACS, joining in 1966. In 2012, ACS honored him with a national meeting symposium, “A Career in Actinide Science: Tribute to Lester Morss.”

An avid carpenter, photographer, and gardener, Morss designed and made beautiful furniture and toys for his family.

He is survived by his wife, Sue; son, Benjamin; daughters, Rebecca Ellis, Alisa Clyne, and Sydney Dy; and nine grandchildren.

Obituary notices of no more than 300 words may be sent to Susan J. Ainsworth at ­s_ainsworth@acs.org and should include an educational and professional history.

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