About Wilhelm Ostwald
Wilhelm Friedrich Ostwald was a Baltic German chemist and philosopher. Ostwald is credited with being one of the founders of the field of physical chemistry, with Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff, Walther Nernst and Svante Arrhenius. He received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1909 for his scientific contributions to the fields of catalysis, chemical equilibria and reaction velocities. Following his 1906 retirement from academic life, Ostwald became much involved in philosophy, art, and politics. During his time at Dorpat, Ostwald had significant exposure to the humanities, the arts, and philosophy, which became a focus of his endeavors after his 1906 retirement from academia. In 1881, Ostwald became a Professor of Chemistry at the Riga Polytechnicum (now Riga Technical University).
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